This post is sponsored by iHerb and contains affiliate links in which I earn a small commission on products I recommend. This supports the blog, and I appreciate it so much! All opinions are my own.
Summer is approaching and that means parties, BBQ’s, and eating outside. I hope you are as happy about that as me! Winter lagged on as long as it could (thank you funky New England weather), so I welcome even the humid days with open arms.
Today I am sharing a pasta salad with my favorite gluten free pasta. This recipe can be used as a main dish because it has lots of mix-ins, or as a side dish.
I have always loved a good pasta salad full of veggies in the summer. It’s lightweight and tasty. I love it best served alongside some grilled steak tips!
To make this recipe super tasty and with high-quality ingredients, I did some online shopping through iHerb.
Have you shopped here before? I found it very user-friendly. I simply made an account and added items to my shopping cart. It was simple to browse by product category or use the search bar to find what I wanted for my recipe. In days, these ingredients arrived at my doorstep!
Fortunately, iHerb carries over 5,000 products so I found the high-quality ingredients I was looking for and I didn’t even have to leave my house. (Introvert + autoimmune spoonie win).
If you’re thinking, “Darn, I don’t live in the U.S. so this doesn’t apply to me,” Hold up! iHerb ships to over 160 countries, so you are likely covered. 🙂
Because of the wide range of organic, gluten free, and overall healthy products, I know I will be placing more orders soon for future recipes.
These are all of the products I bought from iHerb to use this in this recipe (excluding the fresh ingredients). I was so happy to see brands like Simply Organic, Jovial, Arrowhead Mills, Celtic Sea Salt, California Olive Ranch, and lots more.
You’ll notice the dressing for this pasta salad is a vinaigrette. My family has always made vinaigrette dressings for pasta salads, so it’s what I know (and enjoy) best. Nothing against a mayo-based dressing, though! Let me know if you like to see a recipe for that.
The star of this recipe is definitely the pasta. Jovial makes phenomenal gluten free brown rice pasta. The texture and taste is so close to wheat pasta! And it’s organic, score. One dietary change I always recommend to a client with IBD or autoimmune disease is to remove gluten from the diet. With this pasta, you will not feel like you are missing out!
However, the pasta is only as good as its supporting ingredients. The spices, lemon juice, and olive oil bring this dish to life with zest and zing.
Don’t forget: When using dried chickpeas like I did using Arrowhead Mills Organic Chickpeas, they should be soaked overnight before simmering and then eating.
Tip: I prefer to eat this room temperature versus chilled. If you do too, you can mix everything but leave the cheese in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.
I hope you have lots of fun summer plans that you can bring these easy-peasy gluten free pasta salad to! Let me know in the comments what your FAVORITE ingredient in this recipe is!
Before You Start Cooking
You can purchase all of these ingredients and more by shopping at iHerb. If you’ve never shopped with iHerb before, you can receive $5 off your order of $40 or more by using the promo code WELCOME5 and by clicking this link! I’d love to hear what you bought and what you made with your healthy shopping order!
PrintGluten Free Summer Veggie Pasta Salad
SERVES 4-6
Ingredients
For the pasta:
1/2 cup chickpeas
1 box gluten free penne rigate
1/2 cup halved grape tomatoes
1/2 cup diced fresh mozzarella
1/2 cup peas, fresh or frozen
For the dressing:
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
3/4 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp minced onion
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Follow the instructions to prepare the chickpeas by soaking them overnight and then simmering them in fresh water. (See instructions on the package).
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta to the texture of your liking. Drain, rinse with cold water, and add to a large serving bowl.
- While the pasta and chickpeas are cooking, measure out the peas (if frozen, they will defrost quickly on the counter), halve the grape tomatoes, and dice the fresh mozzarella. Add to the bowl with the pasta.
- Once the chickpeas are done, rinse with cold water, drain, and add to the pasta bowl.
- Now to prepare the dressing. Measure the olive oil in a measuring cup.
- Squeeze in the lemon juice and add the rest of the seasonings. Stir well.
- Drizzle the dressing over the pasta and toss well to coat evenly. Enjoy!
