Salmon Pasta Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing

Salmon Pasta Salad with Creamy Basil Dressing

It's that time of year again when all good things are easy to come by.....sunny days, fresh veggies and salmon! Pasta salads are such an easy and tasty meal for those warm summer nights. You can make a complete meal by just adding some crusty french bread or tasty cheesy onion bread (previous post!). I was inspired by a salad that Ina Garten made with fresh spinach, peas and pesto. I simply took it a step further to make a complete meal!

origin - Lisa Lou
difficulty - easy
health meter - medium (you can cut fat by using low fat mayo and sour cream!)

1 box cavatappi pasta cooked and cooled (ziti or rigatoni work well too!)
1 cup frozen sweet peas thawed
corn cut from 2 ears cooked crisp tender*see note
2 cups fresh broccoli cut into small florets cooked crisp tender*see note
2 cups fresh spinach roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped sweet vidalia onion
1 lb salmon cooled, flaked in chunks (bake in foil pouch with salt/pepper, lemon juice or white wine in 350 degree oven for 15-18 minutes)
Creamy Basil Dressing - recipe below

*note* add broccoli to well salted boiling water and cook for approximately 4 minutes, adding the corn at the last minute. Drain and immediately submerge in ice water to stop cooking which will help retain the bright color of the vegetables. Drain again and pat dry.

Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Add dressing (recipe below) and refrigerate for 1 hour. The dressing with be soaked up by the pasta the longer it sits. You may need to add more to taste. Serve with lemon wedges.

Creamy Basil Dressing
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup yogurt
1 cup mayonaise
1 large shallot roughly chopped
1 cup fresh basil loosely packed
1/2 cup fresh parsley loosely packed
1/4 cup pine nuts toasted
1/3 cup vinegar (white wine, champagne, red wine or cider all work)
2 tsp white sugar
salt/pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Correct seasonings to taste.