Greek Penne Pasta Salad

SOUND BITE

If you find yourself saying, “It’s all Greek to me,” then you must be talking about this incredible-tasting pasta and vegetable medley! Fresh and filling, it’s the perfect addition to your backyard BBQ party.

Penne With Ridges vs. Smooth Penne

When it comes to making pasta salad, the best noodles are the groovy ones, and I don’t mean they’re straight outta the 70s. I mean they’re noodles with grooves or ridges on them.

Why is that important?

Let’s take penne (ree-GAH-tay) rigate, for example. Rigate means “with ridges” in Italian and those grooves just aren’t for show, they’re salad dressing magnets!

Noodles with ridges—and those with twists and curves—hold onto dressings better, so each mouthful tastes as good as the last.

Smooth penne? Yes, it’s still pasta, but it’s basically wearing a raincoat—everything just slides right off. And that’s not what we want in a pasta salad.

We want the dressing to cling, so the salad can sing!

Rotiniis another top pasta salad choice, probably my favorite, with its plump spirals ready to trap the dressing and those little cheese crumbles and veggie bits—so every forkful is filled with flavor.

Bottom line: When you’re making salad, it’s important to use your noodle and make good pasta choices.