Strawberry and Goat Cheese Pasta Salad with Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing
Summer pasta salad that’s perfect for BBQs and parties! This flavor-packed pasta salad is tossed with fresh strawberries, baby spinach, tangy goat cheese (or feta), walnuts and homemade lemon poppy seed dressing. It’s a definite crowd pleaser!
Servings: 10 people (side dishes)
Calories: 461kcal
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta I used Rotelle
- 1 pound fresh strawberries hulled and halved or quartered
- 4-5 ounces baby spinach
- 4 ounces goat cheese crumbled
- 1 cup walnuts
Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing
- ½ cup canola oil no substitutes*
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions, until pasta is al dente. Once done, drain pasta and rinse under cold water.
- In a large bowl, toss together pasta, strawberries, baby spinach, goat cheese, walnuts, and lemon poppy seed dressing.
- Serve immediately or place in the fridge for a couple hours and toss before serving. If the pasta is going to sit longer than that, reserve about half of the dressing for drizzling on right before serving, as the longer the pasta sits, the more sauce it absorbs. Enjoy!
Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing
- Place all dressing ingredients except for the poppy seeds into a blender and blend until well combined, about 20-30 seconds. You can also use an immersion blender.
- Once blended, use a spoon or whisk to mix in poppy seeds.
Notes
- If goat cheese isn't your thing, crumbled feta is a good substitute.
- If you're wondering if you can substitute olive oil for canola oil, the answer is NO. It changes the entire flavor of the dressing because olive oil has such a strong flavor. Trust me, I tried it. Either use canola or vegetable oil.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 461kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 447mg | Potassium: 314mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 1193IU | Vitamin C: 33mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 2mg
