I'm not keen on pasta salad with mayonnaise, either. So this is what I do. No actual recipe, but you'll get the idea.

I use tubular pasta, not too big. Cook it until al dente. While it's still hot, I pour some French Dressing over it (Italian Dressing is just as good). Meanwhile, I boil a couple of eggs, and prepare assorted veges. Cooked peas, raw and very finely diced carrot, some red and/or green carrot, some corn niblets, some onion. I chop the eggs, and toss the lot together, adding some more French Dressing if I think it's needed. I like a little finely chopped ham in it, too.

I find it never goes soggy, and it's very nice warmed through and served on toast, as well as cold.

I daresay you could use other veges, or bacon, or even chicken if you wanted to. I like the colour combination of the ones I use.

I'm not sure, but I think French Dressing in Australia may be different from French Dressing in America. Check out the site below, and click on 'French Dressing' to see a picture. I actually use the Lite version. You could always make your own with oil, vinegar and herbs of your choice.

Here is a link that might be useful: French Dressing

This is one I make often:
Cold Noodle Salad
12 oz linguine
2c snow peas, cut in thirds
1 carrot, julienned
1/2c chopped green onion
Dressing:
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
3T Rice vinegar
2 1/2 T sesame oil
2 1 /2 T soy sauce
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes`
Cook pasta and add carrots and snowpeas during the last 3 minutes. Drain well. Combine all dressing ingredients stirring til sugar and salt dissolve. Mix all together and serve at room temperature.
RL`

This recipe of my Mom's is the only pasta salad I like. It has VERY little mayo in it.

Pasta and Mozzarella Salad

8 oz. cork screw pasta
10 oz fresh spinach, torn
8 oz. mozzarella cheese, cubed small
8 oz. thinly sliced hame, chopped

Dressing:
1/4 C. mayo
1 egg
1/2 veg oil
1/2 Parmesan cheese
1/4 C. vinegar
1 clove garlic
salt to taste

Cook pasta (el dente) and drain. Place dressing ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. Toss together cooked pasta and dressing. Add spinach, cheese and ham. Chill.
Note: it may seem like there is too much dressing but the pasta absorbs, this is not a "soupy" pasta salad.

Spinach Cheese Tortellini Salad

Estimated Time(s)
Preparation Time: 20 min
Cooking Time: 10 min
Refrigerating Time: 1 hr
Ingredients

* 1 package Barilla Spinach Cheese Tortellini, prepared according to package directions, chilled
* 1 cup cooked broccoli-( ala dente)
* 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
* 1/2 cup red peppers ( thin sliced)
* 1/4 cup thin sliced carrots
* 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar salad dressing

( I also add a few greek olives & chopped garlic to taste)

Directions

* TOSS pasta,broccoli, tomatoes, peppers, carrots.olives and salad dressing in medium bowl; Serve nice and cold

This one has rice instead of pasta. My DD wasn't big on sandwiches either and one of her favorite lunches was a fruit and cheese lunch - 2 or 3 different types of each: fruit, cubes or slices of cheeses, and crackers.

CORN RICE SALAD

1 (16 oz.) can whole corn, drained
2 cups cooked rice
1/ 4 cup chopped sweet red pepper
1/ 4 cup chopped scallions
1/ 4 cup chopped black olives
Cherry tomatoes for garnish

3 Tbs. olive or salad oil
3 Tbs. white wine or cider vinegar
2 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley
1/ 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/ 4 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbs. Parmesan cheese

In medium bowl, combine corn, rice, pepper, scallions and olives In screw top jar, combine oil, vinegar, soy sauce, parsley, mustard and garlic powder. Shake and pour over corn mixture. Cover and chill several hours or overnight. To serve, stir in halved cherry tomatoes. Top with Parmesan cheese. Note: if using olive oil, let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before adding tomatoes and cheese.

like daisy, i use salad dressings (italian is a favorite, as are balsamic or lemon/herb vinagrette) for things besides tossed salads. they also make a great marinade for chicken or cheaper cuts of beef or for a quick dressing for shredded cabbage/cole slaw, and i'm sure you and your daughter will enjoy it on any pasta salad you make. and i find it hard to believe i never had a cold orzo salad until a year or two ago but thanx to someone here, i did. a little feta, some black olives, chopped cherry tomatoes, scallions, greek dressing...add or delete whatever you like--it's terrific!

Another idea is to use couscous. It's incredibly easy to use and very versatile. You could hunt up salad recipes, or invent your own. The site below is one I chose at random after searching for 'couscous salad recipes'.

Here is a link that might be useful: couscous salads

Thank you all for your suggestions. They're great!

I make this all the time for the boys' lunches. I cut back on the cayene and I add whatever veggies I have on hand. You can leave out the peanuts, too but I think they're the best part (of course I do, they're the most fattening!).

SPICY ASIAN-STYLE PASTA SALAD

1 pound linguine, broken in half
4 tablespoons oriental sesame oil
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 red bell peppers, seeded, thinly sliced
3 cups snow peas
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup honey-roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain very well. Transfer to large bowl.
Whisk 3 tablespoons sesame oil, honey, soy sauce, vinegar and cayenne pepper in small bowl to blend. Season with salt. Mix half of dressing into pasta. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, peas and onion and sauté until just beginning to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add vegetables to pasta. Mix in peanuts and enough dressing to coat. Serve, passing any remaining dressing separately.

Here is one from my sister, Sharon. we love it!

Greek Orzo Salad

1c uncooked orzo
2c chopped cucumber
1-1/2c cherry tomatoes, quartered
1c feta cheese,crumbled
1/2c chopped onion
1/2c chopped fresh parsley
1/2c chopped black olives
2tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper

Dressing:
1/3c extra virgin olive oil
1/3c lemon juice
1tsp minced garlic
½ tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper

Cook orzo, cool, place in bowl with prepared vegetables. Toss with dressing and chill

Linda

Cold Chicken pasta Salad

6 chicken breasts, boiled & chopped (rotesserie chicken is great)
3 tomatoes
2 cans artichoke hearts
4 tbs. Capers
1/2 bunch chopped scallions
4 cup Cooked pasta

Combine above ingredients.

DRESSING:

1 cup Olive oil
1/4 cup Red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp. Cayenne
1/4 cup Lemon juice
Garlic
1 tbs Dijon mustard

Combine ingredients and toss over chicken salad.

Linda in Tennessee

This is one of my favorite salads-I also like to stuff a tomatoe with it also.

"Sharon's Shrimp Salad"
************************
*4 cups cooked pasta (the tiny "O" ring pasta..al dente)
* 1/2 lb cooked shrimp-sliced in half lengthways
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1 cup frozen green peas-cooked till just done!
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes-diced
1/2 cup diced sweet onion
1 small jar of marinated artichoke hearts, cut in chunks
salt & pepper to taste
grated rind & juice of 1 lemon

DRESSING:
*********
Equal parts of MARIE'S Blue Cheese Vinagrette
(in produce case at the grocery)
and Catalina dressing.Blend together & mix into the pasta salad. Mighty Tasty!!

We don't always follow a recipe when making pasta salad either. One of my favorites though is rotini tossed with pesto, peas and chopped pine nuts or almonds.

My daughter took pasta salad for lunch a lot. She'd make a big bowl and eat it for days. This has been her favorite since she was little and we used tricolor rotini (Wiggleworm Salad).

No real recipe: pasta, vegies (celery,onion, peas, olives,zucchini, radishes, barely cooked broccoli, cauliflower and carrots...whatever you like), cubed cheese, and diced grilled chicken breast, or maybe ham or salami.

The key is the dressing, which I discovered by accident when I ran out of Italian. I just needed a little more, so I grabbed a bottle of red French dressing. The sweet of the French and the zing of the Italian really compliment each other.

These all sound so good! I'm making cold pasta salad for a barbeque this Saturday, and I think I'll combine different ingredients from these postings. There doesn't seem to be a definitive pasta salad recipe, which is what I like about these. You can put your own individual stamp on it.

My only question is: when do I put the dressing on the salad - when it's still hot, or when it cools off?

my 14 yr old loves this and you can doctor it up

California pasta
1 bag tri colored pasta
pine nuts
olive oil
1 container or 2 of crumbled feta cheese
1 nice sized tomato
1 cucumber
asagio cheese

make the pasta drain, put the pine nuts in a skillet with enough olive oil to cover them and let them turn a nice golden brown. add to the pasta the tomato, cucumber, cheeses and any extras you might want (black olives, artichokes) then dump the olive oil pine nut mixture over top, stir well and chill. so good the next day.

Cheerful, I just found your question. Hope its not too late for my opinion - I put some of the dressing on while the pasta is warm to really absorb the flavors, then I save some and dress it again before serving, cause it will be a bit dry and need some more at the last minute.

I went to a pot luck last night and used this salad from this site. It was a crowd pleaser and everyone wanted the recipe. Thanks!

Posted by doucanoe (My Page) on Fri, Jan 19, 07 at 15:21

Here is one from my sister, Sharon. we love it!
Greek Orzo Salad

1c uncooked orzo
2c chopped cucumber
1-1/2c cherry tomatoes, quartered
1c feta cheese,crumbled
1/2c chopped onion
1/2c chopped fresh parsley
1/2c chopped black olives
2tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper

Dressing:
1/3c extra virgin olive oil
1/3c lemon juice
1tsp minced garlic
½ tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper

Cook orzo, cool, place in bowl with prepared vegetables. Toss with dressing and chill

Linda

Pasta Salad with Honey-Dijon Dressing

3 cups (8 oz) Rotelle, uncooked
Honey-Dijon Dressing
2 cups fresh broccoli florets
½ cup thinly sliced red onion, cut into halves
1/3 cup shredded fresh carrot

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Rinse with cold water to cool quickly; drain well. Meanwhile, prepare Honey-Dijon Dressing. Stir in cooled pasta and remaining ingredients. Cover; refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes 7 servings (1 cup each)

Honey-Dijon Dressing: In large bowl, stir together ½ cup olive or vegetable oil, ¼ cup red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons honey and 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard.

Source: San Giorgio

Pasta salad.

one 16 ounce Piccollini (tiny tiny bow tie pasta) cook as directed.

add one 7 oz container traditional pesto
one chopped red sweet and green bell pepper
one can drained and chopped can of olives
4 green onions
Let set overnight to flavor. Very elegant and tasty

Oh my! So glad you liked the Orzo Salad, highiqblonde!

Ever since my sister first brought it to a family gathering several years ago, it's been one of our favorites, too!

Loralee, your pesto salad looks good, to. I'll be trying that one soon!

Linda