Hope you all had a lovely weekend. Mine was pretty packed with all things good. We had a little Frozen viewing party, two family birthday get togethers, a way too successful trip to Target, a Cub’s spring training game, dinner at my parent’s house, and church. Cory and the boys even set up the tent and slept in the backyard one night! Now that I’m writing it all out, I can’t believe we packed that much in. No wonder Little Boy #3 fell asleep in my arms right after dinner tonight! By the way, you can follow me on Instagram if you like to see more weekend/ casual/ behind the scene pics.
So don’t you just love that Frozen? I am not a fan of kid’s movies in general. I’m lucky (well, my boys are too) that my mom happens to love a lot of kid’s movies and will often take my boys to the theater and so I get to skip out on that whole scene. I can’t seem to sit that long, and I hate it when you think the movie is just about to finally wrap it up and save the darn princess, but then along comes another villain and we have to endure another half hour of fairy tale torture. So I don’t say it lightly – Frozen is just so sweet, honest, deep, and endearing.
I’m also a big fan of pasta salads. This one is a spin on the classic Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato sandwich, but substitutes fresh cheese tortellini for the typical toasted bread. I love mixing spinach leaves into my pasta salad. It lightens them up (so you can eat more), and adds a beautiful splash of green. The dressing is a quick, jazzed up ranch made from sour cream and dry dressing mix. This salad is great to have in the fridge for weekday lunches… you’ve got all four food groups in one bowl. Does anyone even care about the four food groups anymore? Haha! I think not.
Well, the weekend has come to an end, and my house is so quiet compared to the laughter and chaos of the busy weekend as I wrap up this post and say goodnight. Ready for another week? Best foot forward, thinking happy/thankful thoughts, dwelling on what’s lovely and true. Bring it Monday!
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BLT Pasta Salad
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Salads
- Cuisine: American
Description
This BLT Pasta Salad is your Classic Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich updated for a quick, fresh, filling lunch!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 clove garlic pressed through a garlic press
- 3 teaspoons dry ranch dip mix
- 9 ounces fresh cheese tortellini
- 2 tablespoons crumbled bacon (can use bacon bits), divided
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach
- 1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix together sour cream, garlic, ranch dip mix and 1 tablespoon of the crumbled bacon. Refrigerate until you are ready to assemble the salad. It tastes best when it has had at least an hour to sit so the flavors can blend together.
- Cook pasta according to directions, then strain and rinse with cold water, and strain again.
- Mix pasta with dressing, and then toss with baby spinach and tomatoes. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of crumbled bacon on top. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
I used about 3/4 of the dressing for this salad, but I tend to like my salads dressed lightly.
This recipe was inspired by a pasta salad that I had at a Pampered Chef party years ago.
Kathi @ Deliciously Yum! says
This is one gorgeous salad, Julie! Love that you turned a sandwich into a bowl full of goodness and it looks beyond satisfying. Hope you have had some time to relax after your crazy busy weekend 🙂
Julie says
Thank you Kathi! It felt good to hang out at home today and slowly chip away at the laundry :0)
Karen @ The Food Charlatan says
Beautiful Julie! Saw this on the front page over at foodgawker. Probably because it looks so incredible! And Julie, I just came to the realization the other day that I don’t like kids movies either. We went to see the Lego movie with my daughter the other night and the whole time I was just thinking “I could be getting so much done right now.” I guess that means I’m using TV as a babysitter too much…oops!!!
Julie says
Thanks Karen! My husband took the boys to see the Lego movie. They came back and said, “Everything is Awesome!” for days!
Jamie@Milk N Cookies says
Julie, this salad looks delicious! I love BLTs and the idea of turning it into a pasta salad (another of my favorite dishes) is a great one. I can’t wait to try this!
BTW, when my mom used to make a Caesar pasta salad with tortelli, grilled, chicken, and romaine lettuce. As a kid, I thought it was weird to eat lettuce with my pasta — but now I love it!
Julie says
Thanks Jamie! A Caesar salad with pasta and romaine would be so good I’m sure!
Linea says
WOW, this looks delicious!!!
We are going on a trip this saturday and have to bring food.
Do you think I could make this salad and keep ip in one of those freese-bags for 4 hours or would it turn bad?
Julie says
Linea, I do think this salad would travel well in a freezer bag, as long as you had a couple of ice bags surrounding it. Hope you enjoy!
Valerie says
Looks yummy, do you think you could sub the sour cream for miracle whip? That would make it more like a BLT but not sure if it would work with the ranch seasoning?
Julie says
Hi Valerie! I think Miracle Whip could be substituted for the sour cream. Good idea!
Ginny says
Looks delicious. May be a silly question, but where can I find fresh tortellini. I’ve only seen it frozen? Thank you!
Julie says
Hi Ginny! Not a silly question at all – fresh tortellini is usually by the deli. The brand I buy is Buitoni. However, if your local grocery only sells frozen, I’m sure that would work out just fine. Hope you enjoy!
Megan says
I’m not too big on tomatoes bc of having stomach surgery. Grape or cherry tomatoes sugar content is too much for me, have u tried this dish with sun-dried tomatoes? or with a pesto sauce?
Julie says
I have not tried them before, but your suggestions sound great!
Lisa says
Hi Julie,
I made this salad for the first time for our Christmas potluck at work. It was delicious and went fast! I received many compliments. Also, the green spinach and red tomatoes made it very festive. I will be adding this to my meal idea rotation for my lunches during the week. Easy add-ins such as precooked or leftover grilled chicken make it a complete meal. Also, using bow tie (or any small pasta (instead of cheese tortellini) make it easy to prepare with what you already have on hand.
Julie says
Hi Lisa, I remember when I first made this salad I thought it would be so pretty at Christmastime. I’m so glad everyone liked it! Thanks for letting me know :0)
Spring says
I was wondering if pre-made dressing would be ok?
Julie says
It would be okay – they tend to be a little thinner, so just keep that in mind.
Julie says
Sounds delicious
Carol says
What a yummy salad! I’m usually not a fan of pasta salad, but this one is a keeper. I used cherry tomatoes from our garden and added grilled chicken as suggested by one reviewer. Served with rolls, it was a complete meal – a fabulous, fresh tasting summer dinner salad that I will definitely make again. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Chelsea says
How long do you think this can stay in the fridge? I will make this just for me for my lunches for work
Julie says
I think you could make it ahead of time for work, but maybe just add the spinach in the day of so it stays crisper. I would say you could make it 3 days in advance.
Carmen says
Can this be served cold