Spaghetti Salad

We had a Missionary Meeting in Manchester on Monday for all of the Senior Couples.  We were asked to bring pot luck.  I thought about making something hot to take, but was concerned that I wouldn't be able to keep it warm until we got there.  I also thought about making Deviled Eggs, but then I was concerned that they wouldn't travel well, so in the end I decided to make my Spaghetti Salad!

 

This salad is so delicious and is just perfect for large gatherings, which makes it just right for any buffet pot luck get-togethers you will be attending or hosting during the upcoming holiday season!



Once you have everything chopped, it goes together really quickly.  It's colourful and really delicious and very simple to make.

 

It's one of those salads that actually tastes better the longer it sits, although if you have it sitting for too long, you may want to add a bit more salad dressing to loosen it up a bit as the pasta will absorb some of the dressing, which is why you will want to cook your pasta only to al dente.  Nothing worse than soggy spaghetti!

*Spaghetti Salad*

Serves 10

Printable Recipe 

This is a delicious salad which makes a delicious dish for the buffet table!  Plan ahead as it should sit in the refrigerator for at least two hours prior to serving.  It actually gets better with time. 

1 pound of spaghetti noodles, broken into 3-4 inch pieces

1/2 small broccoli head, broken into florets

1/2 small cauliflower head, broken into florets

1 punnet of baby plum tomatoes quartered (about 2 cups)

1 each, yellow, green and red bell peppers, trimmed, seeds and ribs discarded, chopped

1 red onion, peeled and finely diced

1/2 English cucumber, unpeeled, washed and diced

1 small jar of sliced ripe olives, drained (about 1/2 cup)

8 ounces of cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes 

For the dressing:

1 bottle of Italian Salad Dressing (about 2 cups)

50g of grated parmesan cheese (1/4 cup)

1 tsp sweet paprika

1/4 tsp garlic powder

salt and black pepper to taste 

To top:

1 tsp  garlic italian herb blend

Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions.  Add the broccoli and cauliflower florets for the last two minutes.  Drain well. Rise in cold water and set aside to cool completel.  Place the tomatoes, peppers onions, cucumber, olives and cheese in a large bowl.  Add the cooled broccoli and cauliflower florets along with the cooled spaghetti noodles.  Mix together well.  Whisk together the Italian dressing, cheese, paprika, and garlic powder.  Pour over the salad mixture in the bowl.  Toss together to combine thoroughly.  Season to taste with salt and black pepper.  Sprinkle the garlic herb seasoning on top.  Cover and chill for at least 2 hours prior to serving.



 Calories per serving:  379
Fat:  20.7g
Carbs:  35.6g
sugars:  4.4g
protein: 13.7g



You can cut down the calories and fat by using low fat Italian Dressing and lower fat Cheddar cheese.  Also so if you use whole wheat spaghetti, you will up the fibre and make it fairly low GI.



My handy tip for breaking the spaghetti into pieces is to wrap the whole lot in a  clean tea towel, kind of like a tube shape.  Holding both ends of the towel, pull it down against the edge of a counter top.  It should break into smaller bits and then you can just shake the whole towel of spaghetti bits into the boiling water!