
Strawberries, in a pasta salad? Yup, you read that right. News flash: Strawberries aren’t just for dessert; their sweet and slightly tart flavor lends itself perfectly to savory dishes. We took the building blocks of the ever popular strawberry spinach salad, threw in some spiral pasta, and added creamy goat cheese, crunchy toasted almonds, delicate shallots, and fresh mint and basil to make it a real party.
The salad:
Strawberries and balsamic vinegar are culinary BFFs, so tossing the pasta salad in a balsamic vinaigrette made perfect sense. The vinaigrette is lightly sweetened with maple syrup to bring the sweet, savory, and tart notes of the salad into perfect harmony.
The balsamic glaze:
We finish the pasta salad with a balsamic glaze for color and flavor. If you can’t get your hands on a bottle, you can easily make it yourself at home. Take a cup of balsamic vinegar and simmer it in a small saucepan over medium heat until it’s thickened and reduced by about half.
Serving ideas:
This pasta salad is hearty enough to serve on its own as an entrée, but if you want to go all out, it’s perfect for the spring or summer served with lamb burgers or honey-garlic glazed salmon, or make it a fruity affair and pair it with peach balsamic grilled chicken.
Did you try this recipe? Let us know how it went in the comments!
Ingredients
Kosher salt
- 1 lb.
fusilli or rotini pasta
- 1/2 cup
extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1/2 cup
sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup
balsamic vinegar
- 2 Tbsp.
maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp.
Dijon mustard
Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 lb.
fresh strawberries, hulled, sliced
- 1
small shallot, peeled, thinly sliced
- 2 cups
baby spinach
- 1/2 cup
fresh basil leaves, torn if large
- 1/2 cup
fresh mint leaves, torn if large
- 6 oz.
goat cheese, crumbled (about 1 c.)
Store-bought or homemade balsamic glaze, for drizzling
Directions
- Step 1In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta, stirring occasionally, until al dente according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water. Drain again.
- Step 2Meanwhile, in a small skillet over medium heat, heat 1/4 cup oil. Add almonds and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and lightly golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer almonds to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve oil in skillet; season with salt. Transfer oil to a large bowl and whisk in vinegar, syrup, mustard, and remaining 1/4 cup oil; season with salt and pepper.
- Step 3To bowl with vinegar mixture, add pasta, strawberries, shallots, spinach, basil, and mint. Toss to coast; season with salt and pepper, if needed. Add almonds and cheese and gently toss to combine. Drizzle with balsamic glaze.