Protein Pasta Salad

In my home my family and I have beef red meat free for about twelve years. This past week we have decided to go vegetarian, to be specific we will be practicing ovo-lacto vegetarianism (diet includes both eggs and dairy products, excluding meat products)


I have always been more of a herbivore than a meat eater and also a strong advocate to stop animal testing and cruelty, so the transition seemed logical. We will see how this change goes, in our quest to eat clean and meat free.

My first vegetarian recipe is my Protein Pasta. I have packed this pasta salad to the brim with protein. This salad is always better the next day when all the flavors have melded together.



Ingredients

Spiral vegetable/protein pasta, cooked al dente
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red, bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup of whole raw almonds
1 can of pitted black olives
2 cups of cubed mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese

Dressing

1 cup of grated parmesan cheese
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup of Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette
salt and pepper to taste



Directions 

In a large pot cook your protein pasta al dente. Drain and set aside to cool. Meanwhile chop your peppers into big pieces, and cube your mozzarella cheese. In a large bowl add your cooled pasta, nuts, peppers, black olives, 2 cups of mozzarella cheese, and 1 cup of grated parmesan cheese.

For your pasta salad dressing, chop up two green onions and place in a food processor alone with 1 cup of parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette. Blend until dressing is smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Add your dressing to the pasta salad and mix.

Enjoy!