BLT Pasta Salad
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BLT Pasta Salad is a potluck favorite, and loaded with delicious flavors. Tender pasta is tossed with crisp salty bacon, ripe juicy tomatoes and crunchy romaine for a pasta salad your family is going to love!
Serve alongside grilled chicken kabobs and crockpot baked beans for the perfect potluck meal!
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Ingredients & Variations
Pasta Salad is one of my go-to summer side dishes! It’s quick, easy and can be prepared ahead of time and it’s a dish everyone seems to love!
PASTA Macaroni noodles are a great pasta for this recipe. Other great kinds of pasta include bow tie, rotini, or fusilli. The ridges in these pasta noodles are a great way to get every last drop of dressing onto your plate!
Feel free to use any pasta you have on hand. Regardless of what you choose this easy side dish is always a hit!
DRESSING For this recipe we use a combination of ranch dressing and mayonnaise. If you are out of mayonnaise you can easily just use ranch dressing with similar results!
If you don’t have any ranch dressing on hand, you can substitute Greek yogurt or sour cream and add in 1/2 teaspoon each onion powder, dill, parsley and a dash of salt.
TOPPINGS While a BLT salad isn’t complete with bacon, lettuce, and tomatoes there are a few extra veggies that really make this dish!
We add celery for a little extra crunch and green onions for added flavor and color! You could also chop up and add in some bell peppers, avocado, shredded carrots or cucumbers.
I love romaine for the crunch it adds to the salad but you can most certainly sub in your favorite greens, fresh spinach or kale are delicious options.
While this does make a great side dish, we often add chopped grilled chicken to turn it into a main dish. Perfect for a warm summer evening or to take for lunches to work!
How to Make BLT Pasta Salad
I’ve taken those classic sandwich flavors and married them in a quick and easy pasta salad recipe for the perfect potluck dish!
- Boil pasta and set aside to cool.
- Combine all dressing ingredients (per recipe below).
- Toss all ingredients together.
To let the flavors combine, refrigerate for 1 hour or longer before serving.
Tips for Success
- To speed up the prep of this recipe try using leftover macaroni noodles or precooking them the night before to cool in the refrigerator.
- This salad can easily be made ahead of time. Just follow the recipe and place it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days before serving.
- If making ahead, leave the lettuce out until ready to serve to stop it from wilting!
There is just something so good about the flavors in a traditional BLT sandwich. Layers of toasted sourdough, creamy mayonnaise, crisp smoky bacon, and juicy ripe tomatoes.
It’s one of our favorite sandwiches for any meal of the day and somehow tastes even better turned into a macaroni salad!
Favorite Pasta Salads
- Spinach & Tomato Chicken Pasta Salad – full of flavor
- Southwest Pasta Salad – ready in 20 mins
- Mediterranean Pasta Salad – cool & refreshing
- Ranch Macaroni Salad – with bacon and chicken
- BBQ Chicken Macaroni Salad – potluck favorite
Tender pasta is tossed with crisp salty bacon, ripe juicy tomatoes and crunchy romaine!
- 1 pound macaroni noodles or other short pasta cooked & drained
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 2-3 cups romaine chopped
- 1/2 pound bacon cooked & crumbled
- 1/2 cup celery diced
- 1/4 cup green onions sliced
- 2/3 cup mayo
- 2/3 cup ranch
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt & pepper
- Cook macaroni noodles according to package directions and drain well.
- Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl until mixed.
- Toss all ingredients in a large bowl until well mixed. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving.
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
