Pure Grace Farms

A Sane Approach to Sustainability

Navigation
  • Blog
  • Recipes
    • Recipes By Post
    • Recipe Index
  • Garden
    • Garden
    • DIY
      • How to Make a Home Made Drying Frame
  • My Stories
    • Word’s and Musings
    • camping
  • In the Spotlight
    • About – In the Spotlight
    • Spotlight Thursday
  • About
  • Partner with Me
    • Advertise
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy: Pure Grace Farms

Garden Fresh Pasta Salad

October 3, 2015 by Shari Eckstrom 7 Comments

Garden Fresh Pasta

I haven’t always been a pasta lover.  

In times past I saw pasta only as a vehicle for a grey, pasty, congealed type of sauce with chunks of meat sprinkled in and cooked to oblivion.

And then I discovered gardening.

Garden Fresh Pasta Suddenly I had access to fresh garden tomatoes, sweet white onions, and crisp delicious peppers in every color of the rainbow, My world of pasta changed in an instant.  

Garden Fresh Pasta is one of my favorites. It is a simple meal that can be thrown together quickly. Change up the spices, throw in a few herbs and the possibilities are endless. I love spicy, so when I don’t have any homemade chili oil ready to go, I substitute cayenne pepper instead.  I love the added benefit that cayenne pepper gives to boost my immune system. It’s even better when I’m using my own cayenne peppers I have dried from the garden.

Garden Fresh Pasta Another of the things I love about this salad is the juice from the tomato makes up part of the delicious dressing. So, I pick out the juiciest looking tomatoes I can find. Usually this means a vine ripened tomato like a Beef, or Celebrity variety. A Roma or any Italian variety is usually too dry for this salad. Also, don’t worry about the seeds from the tomatoes. You will want to scrape up every bit of tomato juice for the yummy dressing to cover your pasta and you wont even notice the seeds.

Orecchiette Pasta with garden fresh veggies, feta and toasted walnuts all add up to a wonderful mouthful of delicious fresh flavor. 

5.0 from 3 reviews
Garden Fresh Pasta Salad
 
Print
Ingredients
  • 1- 2 tbsp chili infused olive oil or substitute ½ tsp cayenne pepper with 1 -2 tbsp oil
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 links Italian sweet sausage
  • 1 lb package of Orecchiette (may substitute any shaped pasta)
  • 4 vine ripened garden fresh tomatoes chopped with liquid reserved
  • ½ cup chopped white onion
  • 1 cup chopped colorful peppers (whatever you have available)
  • ¼ cup chopped Walnuts
  • ¾ cup crumbled feta cheese
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
  • ¼ cup chopped flat italian parsley
  • ½ tsp garlic salt
  • 1-2 tsps sea salt to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Walnuts
  1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  2. Lay walnuts on a baking sheet.
  3. Roast walnuts until they start to brown and smell toasted, 5 to 10 minutes.
  4. Cool.
Italian Sausage
  1. Heat saute pan to medium.
  2. Add 1 tbsp chili infused oil (or oil and cayenne pepper)and cook sausage until well browned on all sides and cooked completely through, adding additional oil as necessary.
  3. Remove from pan, cool and slice into ¼ inch rounds.
Pasta
  1. Cook according to directions on package.
  2. Drain pasta in colander and rinse in cold water to stop cooking process.
  3. Pour into large bowl and place in refrigerator to chill while preparing vegetables.
Basil
  1. Place 1½ Tbsp olive oil in saute pan heated on Medium low.
  2. Add chopped basil and stir.
  3. Remove from heat after basil has wilted and turned bright green in color, about 1 minute.
  4. Cool.
Assembling your Salad
  1. Add tomatoes with their reserved liquid, peppers, onions, Italian sausage, olive oil basil mixture, parsley, garlic salt, salt, and freshly ground pepper to the chilled pasta and stir gently.
  2. Sprinkle with feta cheese and toasted walnuts.
  3. Serve immediately.
Notes
Great Tip
Prepare walnuts, Italian sausage, pasta and vegetables (with the exception of the tomatoes, because you want every dip of that juice for your dressing) earlier in the day. This way, your salad will be quick to throw together when you are ready to eat it.
3.3.3077

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: SOME OF THE LINKS IN THE POST ABOVE ARE “AFFILIATE LINKS.” THIS MEANS IF YOU CLICK ON THE LINK AND PURCHASE THE ITEM, I WILL RECEIVE AN AFFILIATE COMMISSION. REGARDLESS, I ONLY RECOMMEND PRODUCTS OR SERVICES I USE PERSONALLY AND BELIEVE WILL ADD VALUE TO MY READERS. I AM DISCLOSING THIS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION’S 16 CFR, PART 255: “GUIDES CONCERNING THE USE OF ENDORSEMENTS AND TESTIMONIALS IN ADVERTISING.”

Filed Under: Entrees Tagged With: fresh, simple, spicy, tomato, tomatoes, whole food

« 5 Tips for Growing an Indoor Herb Garden

Comments

  1. John Fitt says

    May 4, 2018 at 16:32

    I love pasta! And I love vegetables. This pasta is a magical infusion of color, flavor and spice. Not to mention delicious (*orgasmic sounds*).

    I have always been opposed to pasta being bland – bland flavor, lacking color – just plane Jane. But this one lacked neither, which was why I was so quick to try it out and might I add it did not disappoint. Plus that spicy chili olive oil… flavor overload (in a good way, of course).

    It’s a must try.
    John Fitt recently posted…40 Proven Fat Burning Foods: The Complete ListMy Profile

    Reply
  2. Leo Tat says

    February 17, 2017 at 15:14

    I had the same thought of pasta as you, Shari. To me pasta was always dark red mince meat mixed with peppers, I grew up on it. Your garden pasta looks appetizing and healthy. The look at it gives me an image of eating it in a green garden over a warm summer gentle breeze, love it!
    Leo Tat recently posted…Can Probiotics Help You with Weight Loss, and Lose Belly Fat?My Profile

    Reply
  3. Maria says

    December 28, 2016 at 14:55

    Wow! This was such a flavorsome recipe to enjoy. I love spicy food and loved this dish with your chilli infused olive oil. I used roasted sunflower seeds instead of walnuts. Next, time I’ll make this dish again to have it with cayenne pepper to see which one I would end up sticking to permanently.
    Maria recently posted…Check Out This Ravioli Press MachineMy Profile

    Reply
  4. Nicole@ Family Table Treasures says

    October 3, 2015 at 12:31

    This sounds delicious Shari! My mom has been making batches of canned tomatoes and trying to find some other things to do with the boat loads of tomatoes coming out of the garden this year. I’ll have to share your recipe with her! BTW…welcome back! So happy to see you coming through my feed again! 🙂
    Nicole@ Family Table Treasures recently posted…Apple Cider Caramel ApplesMy Profile

    Reply
    • Shari Eckstrom says

      October 15, 2015 at 15:36

      Thanks Nicole. It’s great to be back. One day at a time… 🙂

      Reply
  5. Carole West @ Garden Up Green says

    October 3, 2015 at 09:21

    You are speaking my kind of food – This looks amazing, I’m thinking you’ve just inspired dinner tonight.
    Thanks it’s been awhile since I’ve had pasta and I just happen to have all these ingredients. Hope you have a great weekend!
    Carole West @ Garden Up Green recently posted…Welcome Pumpkin PlanterMy Profile

    Reply
    • Shari Eckstrom says

      October 3, 2015 at 10:16

      Thanks Carole. I hope you enjoy it. ?

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe:  

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Welcome to Pure Grace Farms. It's great to have you stop in for a visit. We are a small farm nestled in the foothills outside of Boise, Idaho where food is organically grown, prepared and preserved for optimum benefit to body and soul. Read More…

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Everything You Need To Know About Camping: Part 2 - 10 Must Haves When Camping

Everything You Need to Know About Camping: Part 2 – 10 Must Haves When Camping

5 Essential Tools For Camp Cooking

Everything you Need to Know About Camping: Part 4 – The 5 Essential Tools For Camp Cooking

Happy Camper Pasta Salad Bar

Simple Whole Food Camp Cooking Guaranteed to Impress

Everything you Need to Know About Camping: Part 3 - Let's Get Cooking

Everything You Need to Know About Camping: Part 3- Let’s Get Cooking

Categories

Archives

Support Pure Grace Farms – Afilliate Sponsors

Want to help Support Pure Grace Farms? If you have enjoyed my blog and the recipes you find here, one of the ways you can help support Pure Grace Farms is by visiting my Affiliates and making a purchase through their links on this site. Each of my Affiliates pay me a small percentage from your purchase at no additional cost to you, and allows me to continue delivering great recipes and content to this site week after week. Thank you in advance for your support.

Connect

It has long been a passion of mine to live off the grid and develop a greater level of sustainability. Life and circumstances have not always cooperated with my passions. Sometimes my desires come face to face with reality. I am learning to live within that happy middle ground, finding …A sane approach to sustainability. Read More…

Popular Posts

5 Lessons Every New Blogger Should Know…

5 Lessons Every new Blogger Should Know

Watermelon Lemonade: A favorite Summertime…

Watermelon Lemonade: Pure Grace Farms

Klondike Royale Au Gratin Potatoes : Taste The…

Klondike Royale Au Gratin Potatoes: Taste The Love in Every Bite

Preserve the Harvest Series: Blackberries and…

Preserve the Harvest: Let's Talk Blackberries and Canning Homemade Blackberry Syrup

Garden Fresh Zucchini Fritters…

Strawberry Rhubarb Hand Pies…

Strawberry Rhubarb Hand Pies

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress