Canada Day Firecracker Pasta Salad
So you’ve volunteered yourself to bring a salad to your Canada Day festivities this weekend. Splendid! Something cold you can whip up ahead of time! This salad is a classic pasta salad, with a twist. A firecracker twist! And by “firecracker” we mean…just a little kick of spice (thanks to our good friend, sriracha).
This recipe gets Canadian with red & white pasta you dye yourself, and all the fixings too. It’s a delicious addition to your spread, with minimal effort but all the impressive nature you desire when bringing food to a potluck. Let’s be real, it’s like standing in front of a panel of judges made up of your family & friends eating your food. We get it. It’s basically a small scale competition between you and Aunt May.
Make this your year, with a pasta that will have everyone buzzing!
- 1 454g box bowtie (farfalle) pasta - cooked al dente, drained & cooled.
- 1/2 bottle Italian salad dressing
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1/2 cup chopped red peppers
- 1 cup fresh mozzarella, bite sized
- 1/2 cup chorizo sliced (can also use mini pepperoni)
- 1/2 can white beans, drained & rinsed (white kidney or cannelini beans)
- Sriracha sauce, to taste
- 20 drops red food coloring (more or less)
- Large mixing bowl
- Large Ziploc Bag
- With your pre-cooked pasta bowties, remove about 1/2 of them, and place into a ziploc bag. Add in about 20 drops of red food coloring, seal and shake until the color is well distributed.
- Add the red pasta back into the uncolored "white" pasta, and begin to add the rest of your ingredients - onion, beans, tomatoes, mozzarella, chorizo/pepperoni, italian salad dressing & sriracha sauce.
- Lightly toss until everything is well coated. The dye CAN run if you over-mix, so try to avoid this the best you can.
- Set aside in your refrigerator until you are ready to serve! Garnish with parmesan cheese, if you choose.
