What is a Gut Health Pasta Salad?
What makes a pasta salad good for gut health, you ask? I have a few criteria:
- A pasta salad should taste delicious and be enjoyable to eat. Salads should never be boring, and enjoying your food is essential for gut health.
- Choose organic, non-GMO, bronze-cut pasta for the best texture and taste. If you prefer gluten-free options, brown rice pasta is also a flavorful choice.
- Select organic vegetables that are lower in FODMAPs, which are particularly abundant in the spring. For this pasta salad, I use petite peas, snap peas, radishes, Persian cucumbers, and shallots.
- Opt for organic, high-quality dairy. Spring is a wonderful time to find fresh dairy products, and feta is my top pick for pasta salads.
- Use a homemade probiotic salad dressing. Homemade dressings help avoid unnecessary ingredients often found in store-bought versions. A probiotic salad dressing can also support the digestion of fresh vegetables. Parmesan vinaigrette is a favorite choice.
Probiotic Salad Dressings
I think my Probiotic Parmesan Vinaigrette is the way to go for this gut health pasta salad. You can also try my Greek Yogurt Caesar dressing. But I think this salad is best with a vinaigrette rather than a heavy dressing. Seriously, the parm vinaigrette only takes 10 minutes max to throw together, so give it a try!
Perfect Pasta Salad for Spring
For me, nothing says spring like peas. Snap peas, snow peas, and green peas are quintessential spring vegetables. I love that nature has a way of giving us what we’ve been lacking in the previous season. After the heavy and rich foods of winter, this is the perfect pasta salad to refresh and nourish the gut on warmer days.
The Best Pasta to Use
You can use any pasta shape you like. However, I highly recommend elbows, penne, or fusilli. These pasta shapes catch the dressing so well, making each bite have an even flavor. And, as I said above, choose organic, non-GMO, bronze-cut pasta. High-quality pasta truly makes a difference. What’s pictured here is Rummo Elbow Pasta, which I would recommend.
Meal Prepping Gut Health Pasta Salad
This pasta salad serves 4 at 1x. So you can totally meal prep it. Since it does not have leafy greens, it lasts great in the fridge for 3-4 days. Here are some meal prepping tips:
- Cook your pasta in salted water according to the package directions.
- Chop and mix all the vegetables and feta cheese with the pasta.
- Divide the finished pasta salad evenly into four separate airtight containers. This makes grab-and-go lunches or dinners easy throughout the week.
- Store the dressing in small, airtight containers on the side. Add about two tablespoons per serving when ready to eat to keep the pasta and vegetables fresh.
Spring Gut Health Pasta Salad
With quintessential spring vegetables, organic bronze-cut pasta, crumbled feta and homemade probiotic salad dressing this pasta salad is my go-to for a gut healthy meal. It can be a meal prep too!
- Prep: 15 minutes
- Cook: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 ounces pasta, dry
- 1 cup frozen petite peas, blanched*
- 2 cups snap peas, thinly sliced
- 8–10 small radishes, thinly sliced
- 2 small cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup feta crumbled
- 1/2 cup probiotic parmesan vinaigrette
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in salted water according to the package directions.
- While your pasta cooks, wash and slice the vegetables. Prepare the peas and crumble the feta. (see note on blanching frozen peas)
- Make the Parmesan vinaigrette if you haven’t already.
- Drain the pasta when it is done cooking.
- Add everything to a large bowl and toss to combine.
- I like to serve with grilled chicken breast to make it a full meal.
- Please leave a five-star review if you loved this easy recipe!
Notes
- To blanch frozen peas: boil some water and remove from heat. Add the peas to the hot water for 2 minutes then put immediately in an ice bath. (I like to use the hot pasta water to blanch my peas when my pasta is done cooking)
- To meal prep: combine everything except the salad dressing. Divide into four equal portions and store in air-tight containers in the fridge. Add two tablespoons of dressing right before eating.
I made this with gluten free pasta and it bulked up the protein content on top of the probiotic benefit. It’s a perfect meal for gym season!