My friend, Norah, posted this pasta salad recipe on her blog yesterday. And since I'm flying by the seat of my pants on the meal plan again this week I had the freedom to just go ahead and build a meal around it. It's hard for me to estimate the cost of this meal since I had everything on hand. But I would think that if you have all the seasoning and oil and vinegar in your pantry then it would only be about $5 to pull the rest together. I made some changes to the recipe to make it more WW friendly. I'll post it the way I made it here. But if you want to see the original, go here.
Grilled Chicken, Pasta Salad Vinaigrette, Green SaladServes 4
9 points per serving (plus salad dressing)
Approximate cost for this meal: $5 Assuming you have a well stocked spice rack.
Marinate 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a packet of McCormick Grill Mates Zesty Herb marinade prepared according to package directions. Grill over medium heat until juices run clear.
The salad was picked fresh from our own garden. :) You can use any greens you like.
For the pasta salad:
6 oz. uncooked pasta
2T olive oil
2T chicken broth
1/4 c red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon dill
2 cups chopped veggies
I used broccoli, cauliflower, red bell pepper, carrots and celery. I wish I had added some red onion. I didn't think of it till we were eating. Can you see the cool orange cauliflower? I'm a sucker for colorful produce. :) I think I had closer to 3 cups of chopped veggies. It's a flexible recipe.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain well.
Meanwhile combine oil, vinegar, chicken broth and seasonings. Mix well then toss with the veggies and cooked pasta.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Toss lightly before serving.
One serving is 4 oz. grilled chicken, 1/4 of the pasta salad and desired portion of salad greens.
What we thought~
Roger and I liked this meal a lot. It was easy to prepare and fresh and light.
Roger didn't love the raw veggie factor. I made the salad immediately before dinner. The veggies might have softened a little in the dressing if the salad had sat in the fridge for a little while. I'll try that next time. I liked it fine as it was.
Kenzie was on a date and didn't have dinner with us.
Emily ate only the chicken dipped in Ranch.
Jaxon refused to come to the table during dinner but did come and pick at some of it later. I think it was because he had several cold pancakes as a snack a little while before dinner.
Toddlers!
I'm looking forward to the leftover pasta salad for my lunch today. :)
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