Early 2022, green goddess salad created by the blog Baked by Melissa, became the recipe everyone was making and recreating across social media. While I try not to give into trends, this recipe was hard to resist. Why? The green was vibrant and eye-catching, the sauce tangy and herbaceous, and when served as a dip with salted tortilla chips, the crunch was so satisfying. However, there was one thing I didn’t love: all that chopping! The recipe requires a ton of cabbage chopped into very small pieces and cabbage, as we all know, can be a terror to chop. So, I took the key flavors and textures of this viral recipe and made it easier. Here’s my take: the TikTok-famous green goddess salad meets your friendly neighborhood pasta salad.
It’s All in the Dressing
The dressing is what makes this pasta salad special. It’s not your traditional green goddess dressing, which typically has mayo and sour cream. Instead, it’s a more vibrant—both in color and flavor—vegan dressing that has loads of greens and relies on blended cashews for its creaminess and nutritional yeast for a savory, umami depth. Plan ahead and make the dressing up to 2 days before you plan to serve it. Keep it refrigerated and stir it really well before using. You can stir in a little olive oil to thin it out a little, if needed.
Take My Lead and Customize It!
Here are some ways you can customize this versatile pasta salad recipe to your liking:
Instead of the asparagus, frozen peas, and fennel, use green beans, broccoli, fresh peas, sugar snap peas, celery, or endive. The theme is green and fresh! Use Parmesan instead of nutritional yeast to up the umami and creaminess of the dressing. Add a can or two of drained canned white beans for more protein—perfect for when you’re serving it as a vegan main meal. Toss in homemade croutons—it’ll remind you of panzanella! Any short pasta will work. I prefer medium shells because I love how the peas and olives get stuck inside, making for a nice, full bite. You could use gemelli, farfalle, penne, orecchiette, rigatoni, or fusilli.
Every Day is Pasta Salad Season
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In a blender, add the lemon juice, olive oil, basil, spinach, garlic, cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, and black pepper, and blend until very smooth. Rinse with cold tap water to stop the pasta, peas, and asparagus from cooking further in the residual heat. Leave the colander in the sink to drain thoroughly. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Did you love the recipe? Leave us stars below!
