Southwestern Pasta Salad

Let's Shake Things Up A Bit On Taco Thursday 

make a Southwestern Pasta Salad instead!

Cook's Notes: It's an Ever Ready crowd-pleaser pasta salad perfect for summer entertaining and your next BBQ. There are lots of options to customize to your tastes and so easy to put together. Make the salad early in the day to chill so flavors have time to meld before serving. Either serve the pasta salad in a bowl or plate each serving on a lettuce leaf. Cumin can be substituted for Elote seasoning.

Salad  Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups dry medium shells pasta
• 1- 4 oz. can green chiles, drained and patted dry on a paper towel 
• 1/3 cup diced red onions
• 1 cup coleslaw mixture with carrots
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup cubed mozzarella cheese
• 1-1/4 cups mayonnaise or Miracle Whip  
• 1/2 teaspoon each of chile powder, parsley flakes, and Elote seasoning
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved

Optional but highly suggested

• 1 cup frozen roasted corn, thawed
• 1/2-1 cup black beans or olives, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup diced red peppers

Directions:

• Cook pasta shells until al dente, rinse, and drain. 
• Mix salad dressing or mayonnaise with the three spices in a small bowl. 
• In a large bowl add the rest of the ingredients adding in enough dressing to moisten the pasta salad. 
• Refrigerate for several hours, covering the bowl with a sheet of wax paper.
• Serve salad with salsa and chips.