California Spaghetti Salad
I love a great cold pasta salad full of flavors, like my California spaghetti salad!
Ingredients
- 1 pound thin spaghetti broken into halves or thirds
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- 1 English cucumber diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper diced
- 1 red onion diced
- 1 can black olives sliced
- 1 yellow squash diced
- 1 zucchini diced
Dressing
- 16 ounce Italian dressing
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon celery seeds
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl or large pyrex measuring cup, combine the dressing ingredients and whisk together. Cover and place in the refrigerator.
- In a large pot over high heat, bring water to a boil and prepare pasta according to package instructions. Drain pasta in a colander and rinse under cold water to bring the temperature down and keep it from overcooking.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled pasta with the diced fresh vegetables and drizzle with the prepared salad dressing. Mix until all is coated with the dressing
- Place in the refrigerator and chill for 3 hours, or overnight, prior to serving and serve cold. This will allow the flavors to meld together. Enjoy!
Notes
Breaking up the thin spaghetti before cooking is completely optional and only makes for easier eating.
Easily swap out and add in your favorite fresh veggies. This pasta salad is easily customizable.
You can also use a different pasta if you’d like. Fusilli, Rotini, and Farfalle are all great options.
Allow the pasta salad time to chill and marinate. The flavors get better with time and even tastes better the next day!