Greek Pasta Salad_picnic recipe

Greek Pasta Salad with Oil-Free Dressing

What?!? An oil-free dressing?!  Dressings and sauces are just one of our favorite ways to jazz up a dish, so an oil-free greek dressing was a must.  We developed this recipe for the oil-free dressing back when we shared this recipe for our Greek Salad Bowl, and we repurposed it for this fantastic pasta salad!  I mean a Greek Pasta Salad with an Oil-Free Dressing is a win for everyone and it is sure to please palates at your next party or potluck! Phew – a lot of alliteration all at once.  PERFECT!

Greek Pasta Salad

Pasta salads have always been popular at our summer parties.  We make Italian style ones with veggies and Italian dressing, so we thought it would be fun to change it up a bit and use a little greek inspiration with some kalamata olives, pepperoncini, and a dressing with oregano!  It turned out perfect, and we can’t wait to share.  This salad keeps well if made ahead of time.  In fact, we made a large batch and portioned it out for a week’s worth of lunches.  So mix it up the day before your potluck or party or make a batch for your meal prep needs.  Fresh and light for summer.

Prefer to watch the recipe?  Click the image below.

Whole Wheat Pasta

So, we used whole wheat pasta for our salad to get some nice servings of whole grains into the pasta.  We’ve been trying different whole wheat pasta for about four months and have come to love a local brand to Pittsburgh, DeLallo foods, and Bionaturae.  These whole wheat noodles have a nice texture, cook up well, and hold their shape and integrity.  Another key feature is that they don’t have the overly “wheaty taste” that some whole wheat pasta has.  Overall, we are pleased with these brands and would recommend you look for them when seeking whole wheat pasta.

As an aside, the first time we made this recipe we used Banza, chickpea pasta, and it was terrific as well.  Banza would provide an excellent gluten-free option.

Veggies and Beans

To bring a nice balance to this pasta, we added raw chopped veggies for crunch – red onion and red pepper; cucumber for a clean, refreshing bite, and then briny olives, capers, and pepperoncini to really pull in the greek/Mediterranean flavor profile.  The addition of chickpeas was nice for added protein, a serving of beans, and to add a mild flavor to the salad.

 

Greek Pasta Salad with Oil-Free Dressing

Greek Pasta Salad

A Whole Food Plant Based oil-free pasta salad perfect for picnics, potlucks, and summertime! 

  • 1 pound whole wheat pasta
  • 1 medium cucumber, roughly peeled and chopped
  • 1/2 cup diced red pepper
  • 1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed (reserve the chickpea liquid)
  • 1-1 1/2 tablespoons capers
  • 1 cup sliced kalamata olives
  • 1 cup quartered grape tomatoes
  • 1/2 medium red onion, diced
  • 1 batch Oil Free Greek Dressing (recipe below)
  • 1/2 cup pepperoncini rings
  1. Cook Whole Wheat Pasta according to package instructions.
  2. Drain chickpeas – reserve liquid, rinse.
  3. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, and mix in the dressing. 
  4. Top with Pepperoncini rings and serve.
 

 

Oil-Free Greek Salad Dressing

Full of flavor and pizazz, you won’t even notice it’s oil-free!

  • 1 tablespoon white miso
  • 2/3 cup aquafaba/chickpea liquid
  • 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1-1 1/2 tablespoons fresh oregano, minced
  1. Mix miso and a little bit of aquafaba to a smooth paste, whisking out any lumps in the miso. 
  2. Whisk together remaining ingredients.

We hope you enjoy this whole food plant based Greek Pasta Salad with our oil-free dressing!  We’d love to see your creations, so #veginspiredfoodie and tag us @veginspired on social media so we can find them!

Until Next Time,

Eat More Plants & Live VegInspired!

XO,

Kathy