For Book Club this Tuesday, I made my mom’s fruity pasta salad. It was a big hit with my childhood self since I wouldn’t touch pasta salad made with mayo dressing (actually, it’s still not my fave). Now, I make it for summer parties and the recipe is often requested. So, here it is folks. My only request: if you invite me to your summer party, please let me be the one to bring the salad. There are few things that I consistently make well, and this is one of them.
The version I’m offering up is slightly different from the original because it serves more people and goes easy on the wheat germ. Never heard of wheat germ? It’s in a jar in the cereal aisle. I have no idea what else to do with it except put it on this salad. As for the fruit: the original recipe calls for halved grapes, but this time I used blueberries instead.
- 1 box of rotini (16 oz)
- 1/2 cup of wheat germ (Or less if you want. The purpose is to add texture and give the dressing something to stick to.)
- 1 can of pineable chunks, drained (save the juice!)
- 1 cup canteloupe pieces or more to taste
- 1 cup seedless grapes, halved (or blueberries not halved. That would be hard.)
- 2 single-serving containers of peach or apricot yogurt
- 4 tablespoons honey
- 4 tablespoons pineapple syrup
- 1 cup strawberries, sliced
Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain, rince with cold water and drain excess water. Sprinkle half of the wheat germ over the pasta. Mix well. Add pineapple, canteloupe and grapes.
Combine yogurt, honey, and pineapple syrup in a small bowl. Blend well. Pour dressing over fruit and pasta. Stir to combine.
Refrigerate at least two hours or overnight. Stir in strawberries just before serving. Garnish with remaining wheat germ.
Here’s the sort of finished product, after being refrigerated overnight but before the strawberries were added. Clearly I am not a food photographer. In fact, most of my good photos are completely accidental.
Enjoy!
Very interesting…sounds like a dish that would be perfect for a shower!