's motd Thurs Oct 14 - Pasta Salad

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PASTA,

PASTA!!!

Thursday, 14 October 2010

Oh, I see you're smiling. So I

guess you like pasta too, huh? Well, I was

raised on pasta...and my family isn't even Italian.

We had spaghetti and meatballs for dinner a lot

at our home in New Orleans' French Quarter. And,

lemme tell ya', my father made one mean lasagna.

Sometimes when we ate out, we'd have linguini with

clam sauce. (I just loved it, too!)

For centuries, all you could

really get was pasta made from white flour. But

today, you'll find pasta made with vegetables or with

whole wheat pasta. Oh, I see you're not smiling now.

Hey, please don't turn your noses up at the idea of

whole wheat pasta. They have a much different and

better taste than they did five years ago. And not

only that but they're healthier for you, too.

Today, I'd like to share with you a cold pasta salad

recipe I made this weekend. I used a whole wheat bow

tie pasta but you can use also bocelli pasta. (It's

the curly variety of pasta that looks like my hair.

LOL.) You can also use a rigatoni or "tube" pasta.

It's the one that looks like little straws that's been

cut into sections.

I start by adding 8 ounces of pasta to a pot of

boiling water. About 12 minutes later, my pasta is

done. Now, as the pasta is cooking, I get out a large

bowl, adding 10 quartered cherry tomatoes, some thinly

sliced celery, shredded carrots and three thinly

sliced cucumbers. You can actually add any

vegetables you like to this cold pasta salad

such as bell peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, broccoli or

snow peas.

After placing all of your vegetables into the bowl,

it's time to add the cooked pasta and then make the

dressing. I've been using Newman's Light

Vinaigrette salad dressing. (It contains only 35

calories per tablespoon.) And to give my dressing a

little more body, I add two teaspoons of fat-free sour

cream. I add onion and garlic powder to the dressing

along with a half-teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Or you

can add a spicier flavor of mustard, if you prefer.

I mix the dressing in a blender,

pour it over the pasta salad and let it chill for a

few hours in the fridge. This allows the flavors to

marry and create a really fabulous taste. After your

salad has chilled, spoon yourself a serving, (one

cup), onto a plate and enjoy!

Now remember, that half-a-cup of pasta counts as one

starch on your FoodMover. You'll note a

serving of my salad is one whole cup but remember,

it's 50/50 pasta and vegetables. That's why

I give you a cup as a serving because it's an even

split of pasta to vegetables. And you'll be having

less than five grams of fat per serving with the

dressing, by the way. That will count as an "Extra"

on your FoodMover.

With this recipe. I've made enough

salad to enjoy for the next couple of days. The

whole wheat pasta is a little more sturdy so it holds

up better in the salad. And the flavor of this pasta

salad only gets better the next day.

Now promise me that when you go the supermarket

next time, you'll pick up some whole wheat pasta

and give it a try. You'll really love it. I know

I do!

Love,