Creamy pasta salad

I ventured into the land of Quinoa pasta last night.  Since Paulo is wheat free for the next couple of months I had to break out of my usual pasta rut.  I've been a whole wheat pasta Momma for years, I've seen the quinoa pasta but had no reason to try it, until now.  It's a hit!  We tried the Ancient Harvest brand, I couldn't tell a difference and neither could Paulo. 

Creamy pasta salad

One zucchini, julienned

Two roma tomatoes, chopped

One jar of marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped

1/4 cup chopped mixed olives, I used both greens and kalamata olives

2 scallions, both white and green

1 small head of broccoli, chopped

1 box of Ancient harvest Quinoa pasta

1/3 cup Veganaise

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon raw honey

Dry oregano, basil and garlic powder, to taste

Pinch of sea salt

Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl.

Boil the pasta, according to the directions.  In the last 3 minutes add the broccoli and allow to cook with the noodles.  Drain and rinse and add to the bowl with the veggies.

Combine the last five ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well to combine.  Pour over the pasta and veggies and toss well to combine.  Serve immediately.

Paulo and I ate this for dinner last night with a side of cantaloupe and sliced mango.  His first words were "mmm! I like it!"  High praise when feeding a child and trying something new.  You can double the sauce ingredients if you like things a little creamier, which is what I did last night.  Paulo has asked me to make the sauce again and serve it over just plain noodles, yeah, skip those pesky veggies Mom!  Paulo has always preferred his pasta with just butter and Parmesan, both of those things are off the menu now, so I'm glad I could create something that would sub in for that, at least for the time being.