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This Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad recipe is so easy and quick to throw together.

Pair it with some grilled chicken for the perfect summer meal. It’s great for those nights when you just don’t know what to make for dinner.

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This dish is loaded with summer vegetables, fresh herbs, and tossed with a delicious creamy sauce. The secret to the sauce is as the pasta cooks the starch from the pasta combines with the chicken stock to create an easy and delicious creamy sauce.

Ingredients

This is the perfect late summer dish. It is bursting with summer’s best fresh produce.

• 3 cups (24oz) chicken broth
• 2 cups (8oz) elbow macaroni
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 1 small onion
• 2 garlic cloves – minced
• 2 ears of corn – kernels removed approximately 1.5 cups
• 1 medium zucchini – chopped approximately 1 cup
• 1 bell pepper – chopped
• 1-pint of cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup chopped mixed fresh herbs (parsley, sage, thyme, oregano, etc.)

Substitutions

This recipe is adaptable and easy to adjust for what you have on hand. For example, if you don’t have chicken broth, you can just use vegetable broth or just plain water. Using a broth will add more flavor but water will work just fine.

Other substitutions:

• Elbow Macaroni: You can substitute any other small pasta. Try farfalle, rotini, orecchiette, penne, etc.
• Garlic: Substitute 2.5 teaspoons of jarred garlic or .25 teaspoon of garlic powder.
• Corn: If you don’t have any fresh corn you can easily substitute frozen corn.
• Tomatoes: No cherry tomatoes? You can dice larger tomatoes or add 1 can of diced tomatoes.
• Fresh Herbs: Substitute dried herbs for the fresh herbs. Reduce the amount to 2 tablespoons and add them to the simmering pasta.

Directions

1. Add chicken broth and elbow macaroni to a large pot. Bring to a boil.
2. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Simmer for 8-12 minutes stirring occasionally to prevent the pasta from sticking. Pasta should have absorbed most of the broth. Do not drain
3. .In a large pan melt the butter and olive oil. Saute onions until they begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook for one minute until fragrant.
4. Add the corn, zucchini, bell pepper, and tomatoes and saute for 10 to 15 minutes until the zucchini and peppers soften and the tomatoes begin to burst.
5. Stir in cooked pasta and parmesan cheese.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Top with fresh herbs.

Serving suggestions:

• Fried Sourdough Chicken Strips or try the baked version
• Greek Marinated Chicken Kebabs
• Smoked Chicken Wings

Useful Tools

• Enamel Coated Dutch Oven: This is the workhorse of my kitchen. It works just as great on the stovetop as it does in the oven. The thick cast iron heats evenly and the enamel coating makes cleanup a breeze. Plus it comes in my favorite color.
• Herb Scissors: Quickly and easily chop all of your herbs with these herb scissors.

Looking for more easy pasta dishes?

• Baked Provel Macaroni and Cheese
• Lemony Sheet Pan Chicken with Zucchini and Tomatoes
• Four Cheese Lasagna
• Four Cheese Stuffed Shells

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Summer pasta salad

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