Cheddar & Bacon Pasta Salad

This creamy, cold pasta salad is bursting with fresh ingredients like tomatoes, broccoli, crisp bacon, cheddar, olives and red onions. The ranch-mayo dressing provides flavour and creaminess without overpowering the other ingredients. This recipe makes a great summer side dish but you can eat this for lunch as it is quite filling.

 

Bacon & Cheddar Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 3 cups bow-tie pasta, uncooked
• ⅔ cup cheddar cheese crumbles
• 6 slices cooked bacon, diced
• 2-3 small tomatoes, seeded & diced
• ⅔ cup fresh broccoli, chopped
• ⅔ cup red onions, diced
• ⅓ cup black olives
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ½ cup creamy ranch dressing
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½-1 teaspoon oregano

Method

1. Cook pasta until al dente. Be careful not overcook.
2. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water until pasta is cool.
3. Add drained pasta to a large bowl.
4. Add in the bacon, broccoli, red onions, black olives, and tomatoes.
5. Toss to combine. (you may need to add a tiny bit of water to moisten the pasta if it’s too sticky to toss)
6. In a small bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, ranch dressing, garlic and oregano.
7. When ready to serve, mix the dressing in with the pasta mixture until well coated.
8. Serve immediately.