This pasta chopped salad is the perfect spring dish! Tender asparagus, havarti cheese, microgreens and herbs all tossed in a sun dried tomato vinaigrette. So easy and delicious!
Here’s what you can eat for the next few weeks!
This pasta chopped salad is filled with all sorts of spring produce, sharp cheese, microgreens and a deliciously tangy sun dried tomato vinaigrette.
It’s easy, simple, tastes amazing and looks pretty darn cute too!
Tiny pasta. It’s cute!
I can’t help myself.
There is something about an asparagus pasta salad that we just love! I think it’s because it is SO simple – I toss the asparagus in with the pasta for the last few minutes and it comes out perfectly crisp and tender.
Add some other additions, a wonderful dressing, and you’ve got an easy side or even a lunchtime pasta salad.
It’s no secret how much I love a good chopped salad. There is just something about every piece being the same size… you can get a bite of everything off the fork. I love how crunchy it is and the combo of flavors that come together since it’s all evenly chopped!
So, I took a tiny cut of pasta and made something similar to a chopped salad. Basically a chopped salad with some pasta.
This combo isn’t entirely new for us as I already make a spring pasta salad with asparagus that we really enjoy. It has honey mustard dressing. It’s wonderful any time of year!
But this version, with all the tiny bits of flavor, the adorable pasta and the sun dried tomato dressing? SO, so good.
I like to use havarti cheese for this salad. It is incredibly creamy and fits right in. The rest of the ingredients are lovely for a spring meal: peas, asparagus, chives, sun dried tomatoes and microgreens.
Especially microgreens if you can find them!
We’re going to use a little hack to make the dressing and this is one of my favorites. Get the sun dried tomatoes marinated in oil – and use that oil for the dressing. The flavor is fabulous and has a lot of depth. I chop half of the tomatoes and place them right into the dressing. The result is a punchy, tangy vinaigrette that uses all the goodness in the jar.
I also do this with roasted red peppers. Yum!
Now I do not blend this dressing, but it’s definitely doable! I love using my nutribullet for dressings and sauces and I’ve put this dressing in there before with half of the tomatoes. It’s still delicious – creamier and thicker – and makes a nice sauce too.
But since I made this into a pasta sauce, I wanted to stick with a traditional vinaigrette. Which is my love language. I could drink most vinaigrettes because I love briney things that much.
So here we are, with our new little spring dish to enjoy the next few weeks!
Pasta Chopped Salad with Sun Dried Tomato Vinaigrette
Pasta Chopped Salad with Sun Dried Tomato Vinaigrette
This pasta chopped salad is the perfect spring dish! Tender asparagus, havarti cheese, microgreens and herbs all tossed in a sun dried tomato vinaigrette. So easy and delicious!
- 1 pound tiny cut pasta, like ditalini or farfallini
- 10 ounce bag frozen peas
- 1 pound asparagus, cut into thirds and woody ends removed
- 1 jar sun dried tomatoes, chopped
- 8 ounces havarti cheese, cut into cubes
- 1 cup microgreens, spicy, if you can find them
- ¼ cup chopped chives
sun dried tomato vinaigrette
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Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta and cook according to the directions.
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When the pasta has 3 to 4 minutes left, add the asparagus pieces to the water and cook them as the pasta finishes. Drain the pasta and the asparagus together.
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Meanwhile, when the water is boiling, stick the frozen peas in the microwave and cook according to the directions. Drain the bag and place the peas in a bowl.
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Chop the sun dried tomatoes, setting aside ¼ for the dressing. Do not discard the oil! We’re going to use it for the dressing too.
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To assemble everything, place the pasta and asparagus in a large bowl. Add in the peas, chopped tomatoes, havarti cheese and microgreens. Add a few pinches of salt and pepper. Add the chives.
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Drizzle the dressing over and toss well. Add more dressing as you serve!
sun dried tomato vinaigrette
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In a bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the oil from the jar, the vinegar, garlic, honey, tomatoes and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Drizzle the dressing on the salad.
Little bites of everything!
