Blog Hopping: Gluten-Free Pasta Salad with Arugula and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I adore sun-dried tomatoes and try to find ways to use them in a meal at least once a week.  My children don’t always love the texture of sun-dried tomatoes, so sometimes I chop them in my food processor.  If you don’t like them, by all means substitute fresh ones (halved cherry or grape tomatoes would be great), or high quality canned tomatoes, like Muir Glen Organic or San Marzano.

Don’t like arugula?  Substitute baby spinach or another tender green, or even fresh herbs.  I don’t eat dairy much anymore, so I haven’t included cheese, but of course cheese would be a most welcome addition here.  A fresh mozzarella or feta, soft goat cheese (chevre), or a hard grating cheese such as Romano, Parmesan or Grana Padano would be fantastic.

Another fun idea would be to let your family build their own designer pasta salad by having all the toppings/ingredients out in bar fashion.  Of course, swap out the angel hair for corkscrews or shells.  And use wheat pasta if you aren’t avoiding gluten.  Whatever you use, it will turn out great.  It’s a meal you can make ahead of time and serve at room temperature–perfect for those busy days when you don’t get home from T-ball practice until dinner time.

GF Pasta Salad with Arugula and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Ingredients:
1 (8 oz.) box of GF angel hair spaghetti
1 (5 oz. or so) package baby arugula
Bottled sun-dried tomatoes (from Trader Joe’s or Costco, if you can), to taste
1-2 onions, very thinly sliced
Handful or so pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped
fresh herbs (whatever you’ve got–basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme…)
olive oil
white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes (optional, but tasty)

Instructions:
Cook the GF pasta according to package directions.  While pasta is cooking, heat a little olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and cook until they are softened and have turned golden brown.  (You could totally caramelize them, but it will take awhile.  I was in a hurry.)

Rinse and dry the arugula, if needed, and place it in a large bowl.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes, olives, onions and herbs.  Toss.  Add a splash of vinegar.  Taste it.  Season with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes.  Add the cooked pasta and gently toss.  (The GF rice pasta is pretty delicate, so be gentle.)

Serve warm or at room temperature.  Makes enough for 2-4 people depending how hungry you are.

Hop on over and visit the other Blog Hoppers and see their Quick and Easy Family Recipes.

Jessie

{P.S.  I’m going up to Salt Lake City today with April.  We’re making the fabulous Lemon Chiffon Cake from the Spring issue of Simply The Sweet Life on Fresh Living on Channel 2.  The show airs at 1:00 PM MST.  We’ll post a link when it goes up on their site.  We’d love you to tune in!}