Zucchini Pasta Salad
A zesty zucchini pasta salad with spiralized zucchini, spaghetti, and a zippy Italian dressing. Perfect for hot summer days, this cold salad can be made ahead of time and chilled; as it sits the flavors get even better!
Have you tried zucchini noodles before? They’re thin ribbons of raw zucchini and most people either love or hate them.
I’m in the love camp. But zucchini (on its own) doesn’t have a ton of substance so I get why others find the noodles kind of meh. That’s why in this super refreshing, perfect-for-summer recipe, we added some actual pasta to our imposter veggie noodles.
It makes for a more satisfying dish that’s great for a quick lunch or light dinner. You can enjoy the salad as-is or top it with your favorite cooked protein for a heartier meal!
Ingredients Notes
Zucchini: We like to spiralize the zucchini but you could also peel it into strips, or chop it into small pieces.
Pasta: Whole wheat spaghetti blends nicely with the zucchini and holds up well in a chilled salad. Toothier penne or cavatappi noodles would be fun too – just follow the box directions as they may need to be cooked a little longer.
Mixins: We went with briny artichoke hearts, juicy tomatoes, diced red onion, sliced pepperoncini, black olives, chickpeas, and cheese. If you’ve got some veggie pepperoni, toss that in too!
Lastly, you’ll need a zippy Italian vinaigrette. You can use our small-batch recipe or some of your favorite store-bought dressing.
Variations
The ingredients list may look a little long. But you don’t need to run out to the store to make this recipe. Just use what you have, and skip what you don’t.
- If you’re out of tomatoes add half of a diced red or yellow pepper instead.
- Swap the parmesan for mini mozzarella balls or crumbled feta.
- Use kalamata olives in place of black olives, or try a mix of both.
- Toss in some fresh parsley or basil if you’ve got it on hand.
- While the vegetarian pepperoni is optional I think it’s a fun addition and really brings home the pasta salad vibe.
Throw it all in a bowl and drizzle on your favorite dressing. Then give everything a good toss, and dig in!
Zucchini Pasta Salad
This tangy cold pasta salad is packed with fresh veggies, olives, chickpeas, and a zippy Italian dressing. Make it ahead for an easy summer lunch or light dinner for two!
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 2 ounces dry Whole-Grain Spaghetti, broken in half
- 2 small Zucchini (about 6 ounces each)
- 1 cup Cherry Tomatoes, halved (3 ounces)
- 1 cup Artichoke Hearts, drained and quartered (about 6 whole hearts)
- 1/4 cup diced Red Onion
- 4 Pepperoncini, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup Sliced Black Olives (32 grams)
- 3/4 cup Cooked Chickpeas, drained and rinsed if using canned
- 1/4 cup Shredded Vegetarian Parmesan Cheese (1 ounce)
- 6 slices Veggie Pepperoni, quartered (optional)
For the Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 1½ tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 1/8 teaspoon Dried Basil
- 1/8 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1/8 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/8 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1/16 teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta to al dente according to the package directions. Drain pasta and rinse under cool water.
- While the pasta is cooking, spiralize the zucchini and prep the other salad mixins.
- To make the dressing add the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, and seasonings to a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake well to combine.
- In a large bowl combine the cooked pasta and zucchini noodles, toss with tongs. Add in the remaining salad ingredients, drizzle with the dressing, and toss everything together to coat well with the dressing.
- Chill, covered in the fridge until ready to eat.
Notes
Vegetarian Parmesan Cheese: Traditional parmesan cheese is made with animal rennet (also called enzymes) which is not vegetarian. If you want to keep the salad vegetarian, use cheese that is made with microbial enzymes or non-animal rennet.
Spaghetti: For this salad, we like to break our spaghetti noodles in half before cooking. It helps the pasta to cook up evenly and makes it easier to get more of the different salad ingredients on the fork at the same time. If you prefer longer noodles, just leave them whole.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: Half of RecipeAmount Per Serving: Calories: 461Total Fat: 13.7gSaturated Fat: 4.8gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 1050mgCarbohydrates: 59.2gFiber: 9.3gSugar: 8.1gProtein: 25.5g
More Tasty Zucchini Noodle Ideas
This quick and easy Southwestern Zucchini Noodle Salad recipe makes a great lunch for one but can easily be doubled to feed two people. It features ripe tomatoes, black beans, corn, and avocado tossed with a cumin lime vinaigrette.
Looking for a salad that’s full of flavor and packed with filling vegetarian protein? Check out our Quinoa and Zucchini Noodles Salad. My favorite thing about this perfect-for-summer recipe is that it gets better the longer it sits. We took a container of it camping and it was a hit served at dinner and for breakfast the next day!