This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy
Middle Eastern Pasta Salad – put a spin on your traditional pasta salad with a chutney lime vinaigrette, chickpeas, cumin and sauteed onions. It is great served hot or cold!
Today I am sitting in the middle of a park watching my son and his friend play tennis. My son has been obsessed with tennis this summer, and is always asking if I will take him to the courts near our house. Last night he had a friend spend the night, so this morning I brought them over here to play. It is somewhat comical to watch, because neither of them are any good, but they are trying to play a real game. We finally signed my son up for lessons that start next week, so we will have to see how that goes. Next up, I am going to need lessons, so I can actually play with him.
I am super excited to bring you #Pastapalooza today! I met Dreamfields Pasta when I was in Chicago for a conference a few weeks ago. Each week this summer they are having different bloggers take on a different “market basket” challenge. I am here with the Middle Eastern basket. I was challenged to use 5 ingredients from the basket, plus pasta, and then 2 ingredients that I could pick. Pasta salad is a summer staple in my house, so I was super excited to put a Middle Eastern twist on something we already love.
Middle Eastern Pasta Salad is a super quick and easy recipe. It comes together in 20 minutes, and is something you can feel good about feeding your family. This pasta salad is full of chickpeas, sauteed onions, garlic, cumin and then tossed with a mango chutney and lime vinaigrette. It is slightly sweet from the vinaigrette, but the cumin and onions cut through that and give it a great flavor. I was unsure what my husband would think of this, but he emailed me from work, after he had it for lunch that day, to tell me how good it was. Pretty sure that has never happened before, so I know he really liked it!
The really fun part about today? You can vote on which is your favorite Middle Eastern basket, and the winning blogger receiving a $1,000 donation to their local food bank/pantry; a $200 donation will go to the food bank of choice of the remaining bloggers. One randomly drawn fan//participant who voted will win a family pack of Dreamfields + a $1,000 donation to their local food bank/pantry. Any money on behalf of Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts will go to The Food Bank for Larimer County in Colorado. So go vote today!!
Middle Eastern Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 Rotini Pasta
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup onions, thinly sliced
- 2 15 oz cans chickpeas
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 Tablespoons ground cumin
- 1/3 cup Mango Chutney
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons lime juice
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onions, and sauté until soft. Add chickpeas, garlic, and cumin. Stir and cook for 3-5 minutes.
- Meanwhile in a bowl whisk together mango chutney, olive oil, and lime juice. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- In a large bowl combine cooked pasta, chickpea mixture and chutney mixture. Toss to coat. Adjust seasoning to taste. Mix in parsley.
- Store in the fridge until ready to serve. Great served hot or cold.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
** I was compensated by Dreamfields Pasta for my time to create this recipe. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.
Sounds so flavorful! I don’t think I have ever seen such pasta salad before.
I’m always looking for quick ways to spice up a meal. Love this pasta!
I’ve never seen a pasta salad like this before! Usually I would associate these ingredients with a couscous or something, but I’m loving that you used the Dreamfields pasta and made this salad!
What a fun cooking challenge! And I LOVE Dreamfields pasta! 🙂 This pasta salad sounds amazing- love the chickpeas in it!
You know I love the Middle Eastern spin you took on this!
Delicious – I can’t wait to give this a try!!!
I love all these flavors and the addition of the mango chutney is brilliant!!
This must be delicious, I love middle Eastern flavors!