BLT Pasta Salad is full of protein & veggies, made without mayo, and has tons of bacon flavor
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 35 minutesminutes
Total Time 45 minutesminutes
Servings 8
Author Meme
Ingredients
6ozwhole grain pastadry
5tablespoon2% milkor whole milk, divided
8slicescenter-cut baconchopped
2mediumonionsdiced
1pintcherry tomatoes
1clovegarlicminced
4cupsfresh spinachchopped
2tablespoonfresh lemon juice
2teaspoonfresh thyme
½cupcottage cheese
¼cupplain Greek yogurt
½teaspoonsalt
2teaspoonfresh chiveschopped
4cupschopped green leaf or romaine lettuce, for serving
2teaspoonbacon grease
Instructions
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt & fat. Drain; do not rinse. Transfer to a large bowl and add ¼ cup milk to pasta. Set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook chopped bacon over medium heat. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain any excess grease. Drain grease, reserving 2 tsp. {You can use 2 teaspoon olive or canola oil if desired}.
Wipe out skillet and add 2 teaspoon reserved bacon grease or oil. Saute onion and tomatoes until soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and spinach, and cook until spinach wilts, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and thyme, and remove from heat.
In the bowl of a food processor or blender, add cottage cheese, yogurt, salt, and remaining 1 tablespoon milk. Process until completely smooth.
Add onion-tomato mixture and half of the cooked bacon to the bowl with the cooked pasta. Pour cottage cheese mixture in the bowl. Toss well to coat completely. Stir in chives and sprinkle with cooked bacon.
Serve over a bed of lettuce. Enjoy!
Keeps covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
*You use about 2 ¼ cups dry pasta*Serving size is about 1 cup per person for a meal or ½ cup per side serving*Use 2 teaspoon avocado or olive oil in place of the bacon grease if desired*Based on a recipe from Food Network