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Saturday, September 15, 2012

BLT Pasta Salad



Simple to make and consisting of great ingredients, plus an improved spin on a BLT? Must try. I didn't change anything except to omit rustic croutons. I couldn't help but think that the pasta is replacing the sandwich bread, do we really need to add bread?
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6 oz. farfalle
1 lb. bacon
2 c multicolored or red cherry tomatoes, halved
5 oz baby spinach
6 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tbsp finely minced drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Cook farfalle according to package directions; drain. Rinse under cold water; place in large bowl.


Meanwhile, cook bacon in large skillet over medium-high heat 6 to 10 minutes or until crisp, turning once; coarsely chop.


Add bacon, tomatoes and spinach to farfalle.


Combine all remaining ingredients in small bowl.


Stir into pasta mixture until well-coated.



This salad is great! I really liked it, everything about it was good which makes me think a BLT should be made with bacon, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes rather than lettuce and slices of fresh tomato. Just not a fan of the BLT.

Particularly nice here is the sun-dried tomatoes, their texture is bacon-like but offers a nice pleasant flavor. I wonder if the grape tomatoes can be replaced entirely with sun-dried tomatoes or if that would be pushing the limits. Next time I'd go a little easier on the dressing, maybe a tablespoon or so, but no other changes necessary for me. Oh and if you're not into garlic surprises, be sure to mince, mince, mince.

This is supposed to yield four 2-cup servings, but it was so good I ate half of the salad in one sitting and I eyed the bowl considering eating the rest. If I was just a little more hungry...

Cost:
  • farfalle: $0.31 
  • bacon: $2.99
  • cherry tomatoes: $2.99
  • baby spinach: $2.99
  • mayonnaise: $0.31
  • oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes: $0.19
  • garlic cloves: $0.10
Total: $9.88 or $2.47 for each of four servings though you'll want to eat more than one.


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