We’ve all had the cold pasta sides served at family cook-outs, but mayo-based summer pasta salads are played out. This summer, we’re all about fresh, zesty, bright, and beautiful pasta salads, and these dishes are both lovely to look at and taste amazing. Instead of thick, tomato-based sauces, we’re going for lighter and silkier pasta recipes while prioritizing beautiful, fresh ingredients.
TikTok Baked Feta Pasta
While we all know and love the viral Baked Feta Pasta from TikTok, this recipe has lost some of the excitement we all felt when we first saw it. With only the three simple ingredients of cherry tomatoes, a block of feta cheese, and the pasta of your choice, this recipe caught on quickly and was so popular it literally caused a feta cheese shortage in grocery stores. But one of the great things about social media food trends is that there is plenty of room for innovation and new ideas! Next time you’re looking for something new to try, I recommend substituting the feta cheese in the recipe with the new Boursin Black Truffle and Sea Salt Cheese. The creaminess of the baked Boursin cheese mixes in beautifully with the cherry tomatoes after baking and the earthiness of the Black Truffle gives this pasta a fresh new taste.
Minty Green Pasta
One of my favorite things about summer pasta is the focus on fresh herbs and ingredients. In this Minty Green Pasta created by @gabekennedy, this vegetarian dish features beautiful fresh herbs with parsley, mint, garlic, nutritional yeast, olive oil, red pepper flakes, toasted sunflower seeds, and avocado. This almost pesto-y sauce looks so fresh and with the addition of goat cheese and peas to finish it off, this summer pasta will look gorgeous on your table.
Mediterranean Pesto Pasta Salad
This recipe comes to us from Jamie Milne at @everything_delish, whose video features the satisfying pasta bowl with each individual ingredient portioned around the bowl. In her recipe, she uses rotini pasta (though you can substitute it with your favorite pasta), diced red onion, cherry tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, spinach, and crumbled feta cheese. Next, she creates her simple but delicious homemade pesto sauce in her food processor with basil, arugula, olive oil, salt, pepper, avocado, and pine nuts. Finally, add your pesto to your pasta and stir to enjoy all the fresh flavors together in one beautiful dish.
Dairy-Free Green Goddess Pasta Salad with Tomatoes and Grilled Chicken
This amazing recipe from Nicole Rizza at moresaltplease offers a new, dairy-free option for anyone who hasn’t been able to try the Green Goddess dressing by substituting cashew into the recipe. By blending together the water-soaked cashews, green onion, lemon juice, arugula, and olive oil, it’s hard to believe the creaminess of this sauce is achieved without using any dairy. Nicole finishes off this recipe with her pasta, grilled chicken, and cherry tomatoes to create a colorful dish that is bursting with fresh, vegetarian-approved flavors.
Burrata Pasta with Burst Tomatoes and Basil
Our final recipe we think you should try is from Molly Thompson at whatmollymade on TikTok. Her Burrata Pasta with Burst Tomatoes and Basil screams freshness, and it’s hard to believe a recipe that’s so pretty could be so easy to make. Molly features her dish with angel hair pasta, but like most other recipes, you can substitute your own favorite pasta into this dish. Starting with her burst tomatoes, she takes olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning, cooking her tomatoes in the pan until they burst open. Once done, directly add in your cooked pasta and pesto of your choice and toss. Finally, you’ll break open your burrata cheese to lay on top of your pasta, adding fresh basil and shredded parmesan cheese to serve. Insert chef’s kiss here, this dish gives summer freshness and will surely become a staple in your pasta recipe rotation.