Zoodle Pasta Salad

  This zoodle “pasta” salad is the perfect veggie-packed dish for cookouts in the summer! All the flavors of your favorite pasta salad but guilt-free at only 152 calories (5 SP) per serving!

Spring has sprung!! 🙂 I’m so ready to move out of warm, comfort foods like crockpot chili and on to lighter, brighter meals full of fresh fruits and veggies. This zoodle pasta salad is the perfect dish for this season, and it would be great for cookouts in the summer!

I’ve never been a huge fan of salads…I’m more of a pasta salad type of girl. The creamier and cheesier the better! But that brings along massive amounts of calories that I don’t want. So I decided to take some of my favorite pasta salad toppings and add them to a zoodle (zucchini noodle) base, to create a healthier “pasta” salad hybrid. This recipe has quickly become one of my not-so-guilty pleasures. I’m addicted to it!

If you’ve never made zoodles you should try them. Similar to spaghetti squash, they’re an excellent alternative to pasta and they work perfectly for a “pasta” salad.

Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning I will get a small portion of any sales that result from readers clicking my links. This is of no cost to you but is greatly appreciated by me! Thank you! And thank you for trying these products that I love! 

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ZOODLE PASTA SALAD

152 calories per serving

5 SP per serving

If you don’t have a spiralizer yet, I highly recommend the Westmark Spiromat. It’s so simple and quick to use, easy to clean, and it suction cups to your counter so it stays put while you spiralize away!

In order to spiralize the zucchini, you need to cut off each end to create a flat surface. Then you just wedge it between the vegetable holder and spiralizing plate and turn the handle until you have a big bowl of zoodles!

I prefer to cut the zoodles into small, bite size pieces to make it more similar to pasta salad, but you can leave it as long strands if you prefer.

Then all you have to do is prep all the other pasta salad ingredients. You can use the Progressive Pepper Corer for the pepper, then dice half of it into tiny pieces. Toss them into the zoodles, then add in 5 oz of cherry tomatoes. Slice the pepperoni and cucumbers into fourths and add to salad.

If you’re going to be serving this dish immediately, add in 4 oz each of cubed extra sharp cheddar cheese and pepper jack cheese. Top with 1/2 C of Fat Free Zesty Italian salad dressing and dig in!

If you’re going to be storing the salad for a while, don’t add in the cheese and dressing until right before you serve it. Since zoodles aren’t like pasta, the dressing won’t be soaked up as much so the salad and cheese will become soggy if you let it sit too long. But if you enjoy this as much as I do then having it sit around won’t be an issue! 🙂If you’re looking for some more cook out ideas, check out these BBQ ribs, smoked corn on the cob or this grilled corn salad! Another popular dish is this dump and done ramen salad if you’d like another veggie packed side! 🙂

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**Recipe created by Caitlin 

What do you think? Did this recipe make the cut for you or did it crumble? What would you do differently? I look forward to reading your opinions! 

PS: Since I want my blog to be about learning and improving, I wanted to include one of my original images, next to my updated image. (Delicious in either case, but updated to my current chalkboard style! 🙂 )

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