This Rainbow Pasta Salad really represents my favorite season- summer! It’s also vegan and bursting with flavor.

First, start boiling your pasta noodles. I like to use gluten-free noodles for this dish because I like the texture. I use the 12 ounce box of Barilla gluten-free rotoni. While the noodles are cooking, start preparing your veggies. Cut up the red onion, orange pepper, red pepper, and cucumber (don’t forget to take the seeds out of the cucumber). Also, instead of a cucumber, I’ve used jicama, which is a Mexican fruit, almost like a crunchy potato with a sweet taste. Sounds weird but it’s actually good!

Grab a big bowl and put all the veggies in as you go. For me, I have a small kitchen so I like to work as efficiently as possible and without dirtying too many things. So I just use 1 big cutting board to do all the cutting for this dish. Next, cut up the tomatoes (I eat so many tomatoes it’s ridiculous), mango (this is a must have), and the jalapeño pepper. While cutting the pepper, please wear gloves if possible and don’t touch your eyes! I’ve made that mistake.

Next, cut up the avocado. I like to use this handy dandy tool in the photo below (called Kuhn Rikon All-In-One Avocado Tool). My brother bought this for me from Williams & Sonoma and I use it all the time. It scoops out the avocado so nice!

Put all the cut up veggies into a large bowl. Next, mince the garlic. I like to use a citrus zester. Not sure if that’s what other people use, but it works for me! Set the garlic aside (don’t add to the bowl of other veggies).

Prepare the cilantro leaves, removing the stems, and set aside with the garlic. In a blender, combine the garlic, cilantro leaves, lime and lemon juice, olive oil, honey or agave nectar, salt, pepper, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Process until well blended. Set aside. Mix all the colorful veggies and the pasta in the large bowl. Drizzle the dressing over the pasta and mix up. That’s it! All of that chopping wasn’t in vain! I love this dish because it’s so versatile; you can have it for lunch, dinner, as a side dish, or bring to a party. Enjoy. =)

Rainbow Pasta Salad

• Prep Time: 45 minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 6
• Cuisine: Pasta

Ingredients

• 12 ounce gluten-free whole wheat rotini pasta
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 medium orange sweet pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 medium red sweet pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 small cucumber, seeded, peeled and and diced
• 1 1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 large mango, seeded, peeled and diced
• 1 fresh jalapeño chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped (wear gloves while cutting if possible)
• 1 avocado, seeded, peeled and diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, stems removed
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar or maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
2. While pasta is cooking, prepare red onion, orange and red peppers, cucumber, tomatoes, mango, jalapeño, and avocado. Combine in the large bowl. Mince the garlic and set aside.
3. For dressing, in a blender, combine garlic, cilantro, lime juice, lemon juice, cilantro, olive oil, agave, salt, pepper, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Cover and blend until well mixed. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine pasta and all vegetables. Pour dressing over pasta mixture and toss to coat. Eat up! *Tastes best when served immediately.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: