Greek Pasta Salad

Happy Easter! I hope everyone is enjoying copious amounts of Easter candy. I’ve been stuffing jelly beans, sour gummy worms, and cupcakes in my mouth all weekend. Starting tomorrow, I’m quitting cold turkey. No more candy, no more cupcakes, and no more caramel sauce in my iced coffee. I may go through sugar withdrawals, but I’ll have to stay strong. From now on, it’s back to fruit, whole grains, and veggies.

Not only are we celebrating Easter today, but it’s time to celebrate #SundaySupper. I was going to share my mac and cheese recipe with all of you, but I forgot to measure the ingredients. I’m not used to measuring when I cook. Don’t worry, next time I make it, I’ll make sure I remember to measure. However, I did remember to measure the ingredients for the greek pasta salad I made. This is one of my favorite pasta salads. It’s packed with veggies, feta cheese, and kalamata olives. Yum!

We celebrated Easter a day early since some of our family members had to travel home on Easter day. We had a very casual dinner- barbecue style. We grilled chicken, hamburgers, and sausage. I made corn on the cob, greek pasta salad, and a few desserts. My mom made her famous green beans and was the grill master for the day. When the food was done, all of us gathered together and enjoyed the little time we had with each other.

To top the day off, we sat around the fire and had a few cocktails and roasted marshmallows. Enjoy your Easter!

Love and sweet treats,

Jennie

Recipe:

1 pound pasta

1 pint grape tomatoes, whole or halved

1 seedless cucumber, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 yellow pepper, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1/2 red onion, diced

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped

1 15 oz. can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup feta cheese

1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/3 cup plus 1 tbs. red wine vinegar

1 lemon, juiced

6 tsp. honey

2 tsp. dijon mustard

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and drain again. Set aside.

Combine tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, beans, onion, and olives in a large mixing bowl. Add cooked pasta and toss to combine.

In a small bowl, whisk together oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, mustard, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. Pour over pasta and veggie mixture. Add feta and chopped mint. Stir to combine. Refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. Enjoy.