Caesar Pasta Salad
Your favorite Caesar Salad turned into a meal with chicken and pasta, totally delicious! And tips for it to stay crisp for meal prep.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound Cellentani pasta or similar spiral pasta use a lb if you want more pasta
- 6-8 large romaine lettuce leaves chopped
- 1-1 1/2 lbs cooked chicken breast, chopped grilled, sauteed, or rotisserie chicken breast
- 1/3 cup Romano or Parmesan Cheese, shaved additional 1 oz grated cheese for dressing if desired
- pinch salt and pepper to taste you'll add to both the dressing then the pasta salad
- 1 cup homemade creamy caesar dressing recipe follows
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic or garlic paste
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/2- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 4 dashes hot sauce for zing
Instructions
- Prepare the pasta according to package directions, and drain.
- Soak in cold water for 3 minutes, to completely chill the pasta.
- Prepare the dressing while the pasta cooks.
- Mix the sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, garlic, mustard, Worcestershire, hot sauce, and salt and pepper until blended. (for extra cheesy dressing add 1 oz grated Romano or Parmesan Cheese.
- Blot the pasta dry with a paper towel so the dressing will coat that pasta and not "slip" off. Add 1/2 the dressing to the pasta and stir well.
- In a medium bowl, add 1/2 the dressing to the pasta and stir well. Add more dressing as needed as desired.
- If serving immediately mix a couple of tablespoons dressing with the chicken and stir that into the pasta, stir in the chopped lettuce, top with grated cheese and croutons, salt and pepper, and serve.
- I usually prepare the pasta the day ahead when making pasta salad and allow the dressing time to absorb a bit, then add additional dressing before serving.
- In this recipe do not mix the lettuce with the dressing until closer to serving. Add additional dressing if desired.
- When meal prepping place the dressed pasta in the bottom of the dish, add the lettuce and cheese on top. Place the chicken on top. Then place the croutons in a bag, and tuck it inside the container so they stay crunchy.
- Top with salt and pepper and serve.