Time to cool down, Spaghetti Salad
It was a warm one the other day and I wanted something light and refreshing for dinner. So I called up my Mom and asked her for her spaghetti salad recipe. As a kid my Mom would make this for us in the summer. It is great as a side or alone served with some garlic bread.
The fresh vegetables make this a great refreshing meal
Spaghetti Salad – (From Mom)
- 1lb spaghetti
- 1 green pepper
- 1 large tomato or 3 Roma tomatoes
- 1 cucumber
- 1 medium onion
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese – the powdered green can stuff works the best in this recipe.
- 8 oz Zesty Italian Dressing – Recipe Below
- 2 tbs Salad Supreme Seasoning – Store Bought or see Recipe Below
Zesty Italian Dressing – (From Group Recipes)
Salad Supreme Seasoning – (From RecipeZaar)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon poppy seed
- 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1 dash cayenne pepper – or more, up to you. I prefer more.
- 2 tablespoons Romano cheese
In a large pot bring salted water to a boil. Then cook the spaghetti according to the package instructions. Remember this salad is served cold so make sure that pasta is tender. The noodles firm up when chilled. When cooked drain the pasta and then immediately run it under cold water or shock it in ice water to stop the cooking.
Next make the salad dressing. Add all of the ingredients to a bowl and whisk until combined.
Next peel the onion and cucumber Try to dice up all of the vegetables the same size. A quick tip is to leave the root end on the peeled onion. This will keep the onion from falling apart when dicing it.
Dice up the tomato and the green pepper. Try to make them all about the same size.
In a large bowl combine all of the vegetables and the pasta.
Next cover with the Parmesan cheese, Zesty Italian Dressing and 2 tbs of salad supreme seasoning.
Mix and chill for at least 30 minutes.
This salad tastes the best if made the day before you want to enjoy it.
This will be a perfect side dish for those Labor Day Cookouts.
