We've all been there. The potluck is tonight and you forgot. It starts in about an hour and here you are without a dish to pass. What on earth can you throw together in that short of time?
You are in panic mode so all you can think of is: 1) Just don't go. 2) Go empty handed and feel like a schmuck. 3) Bring one of your own bowls to the deli and ask them to fill it up so you can pass it off as your own.
Since none of those options really appeal to you, I think I have a solution; pasta salad! By keeping a few ingredients on hand at all times, you can easily throw together a tasty treat in virtually minutes. Starting with pasta and salad dressing, you can build yourself a dish that will suit any potluck. Let's get started.
Standard pastas like penne, shell, rotini, and even macaroni noodles will make a fine pasta salad once you add your personal touch. If you have a lot of partially full boxes of different pastas, just mix them together. Be sure to cook similarly sized pastas together. If you're cooking penne with angel hair pasta, you'll run into trouble because the cooking time is different. You would want to cook these types of pasta in separate pots.
When it comes to the dressing, you'll do fine if you use any of the standard salad dressings like Italian and Ranch style. Keep a few varieties in the pantry at all times and you'll be prepared for just about any food emergency. Of course, if you're ambitious, it's not difficult to whip up your own homemade dressing using ingredients like olive oil, Dijon mustard, honey, balsamic vinegar, or whatever you like.
Now that you've picked out your pasta and dressing, you need to cook your pasta. Just cook according to the instructions on the package and drain well. Before the pasta cools down, dump it into a large bowl and pour your dressing over and toss gently. You want to add the dressing while the pasta is warm so the flavors intensify and stick to the pasta. Don't drown your pasta in dressing. Add, taste, add, taste, etc. You may even add more after the other ingredients are added.
It's time for your creative cooking to take over. Take a peek in your cupboards and refrigerator and start pulling out food that looks good to you. If you have any cheese, tomatoes, frozen peas, chickpeas, olives, onion, or even artichokes in a jar, throw it in. Give it a taste, and keep adding until you're satisfied. Don't forget the sunflower seeds in the back of the fridge and those croutons, too.
Cut or shred leftover chicken and throw it in. Or, if you have a bit of grilled steak left, thinly slice that and add it. Do a little taste-testing as you go by taking a small portion of the pasta salad out of the big bowl and put it in a small bowl, then add the next ingredient and taste, until you're satisfied. Throw it all together in your serving bowl, put the cover on, and head out to your potluck - on time and with a dish to pass.
When you've forgotten about a potluck with no time to plan an elaborate dish to pass, don't panic. Just pull out your handy-dandy potluck creation starters - pasta and salad dressing. Then let your imagination guide you and before you know it... pasta salad to the rescue!
You are in panic mode so all you can think of is: 1) Just don't go. 2) Go empty handed and feel like a schmuck. 3) Bring one of your own bowls to the deli and ask them to fill it up so you can pass it off as your own.
Since none of those options really appeal to you, I think I have a solution; pasta salad! By keeping a few ingredients on hand at all times, you can easily throw together a tasty treat in virtually minutes. Starting with pasta and salad dressing, you can build yourself a dish that will suit any potluck. Let's get started.
Standard pastas like penne, shell, rotini, and even macaroni noodles will make a fine pasta salad once you add your personal touch. If you have a lot of partially full boxes of different pastas, just mix them together. Be sure to cook similarly sized pastas together. If you're cooking penne with angel hair pasta, you'll run into trouble because the cooking time is different. You would want to cook these types of pasta in separate pots.
When it comes to the dressing, you'll do fine if you use any of the standard salad dressings like Italian and Ranch style. Keep a few varieties in the pantry at all times and you'll be prepared for just about any food emergency. Of course, if you're ambitious, it's not difficult to whip up your own homemade dressing using ingredients like olive oil, Dijon mustard, honey, balsamic vinegar, or whatever you like.
Now that you've picked out your pasta and dressing, you need to cook your pasta. Just cook according to the instructions on the package and drain well. Before the pasta cools down, dump it into a large bowl and pour your dressing over and toss gently. You want to add the dressing while the pasta is warm so the flavors intensify and stick to the pasta. Don't drown your pasta in dressing. Add, taste, add, taste, etc. You may even add more after the other ingredients are added.
It's time for your creative cooking to take over. Take a peek in your cupboards and refrigerator and start pulling out food that looks good to you. If you have any cheese, tomatoes, frozen peas, chickpeas, olives, onion, or even artichokes in a jar, throw it in. Give it a taste, and keep adding until you're satisfied. Don't forget the sunflower seeds in the back of the fridge and those croutons, too.
Cut or shred leftover chicken and throw it in. Or, if you have a bit of grilled steak left, thinly slice that and add it. Do a little taste-testing as you go by taking a small portion of the pasta salad out of the big bowl and put it in a small bowl, then add the next ingredient and taste, until you're satisfied. Throw it all together in your serving bowl, put the cover on, and head out to your potluck - on time and with a dish to pass.
When you've forgotten about a potluck with no time to plan an elaborate dish to pass, don't panic. Just pull out your handy-dandy potluck creation starters - pasta and salad dressing. Then let your imagination guide you and before you know it... pasta salad to the rescue!
About the Author:
Are you a mom who'd rather play than cook? If so, you won't want to miss FreeQuickRecipes.com where youll find quick snack ideas for mothers and others.
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