Cottage Cheese Pasta Salad (Print Version)

Protein-rich pasta with cottage cheese, crisp vegetables, and zesty herb dressing for refreshing summer meals.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 8 oz short pasta (fusilli, penne, or rotini)

→ Dairy

02 - 1 cup cottage cheese

→ Vegetables

03 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
04 - 1 small cucumber, diced
05 - 1 small red bell pepper, diced
06 - 2 spring onions, thinly sliced

→ Dressing

07 - 2 tbsp olive oil
08 - 2 tbsp lemon juice
09 - 1 tsp Dijon mustard
10 - 1 clove garlic, minced
11 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
12 - 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
13 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

# Steps:

01 - Boil pasta in salted water until al dente, then drain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking and cool completely.
02 - Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, parsley, dill, salt, and pepper until emulsified.
03 - Place cooled pasta in large bowl with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, and spring onions. Pour dressing over and toss gently.
04 - Fold cottage cheese into salad until evenly distributed throughout the mixture.
05 - Adjust seasoning with additional lemon juice, salt, or pepper as needed. Refrigerate for 15 minutes before serving.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The creamy cottage cheese keeps you full for hours without that heavy pasta weighing you down
  • Everything gets tossed in one bowl and miraculously tastes better after chilling in the fridge
02 -
  • The pasta absorbs dressing as it sits, so it'll taste better after a few hours in the fridge than it does immediately
  • Cottage cheese can vary wildly in salt content depending on the brand, always taste before adding more salt
03 -
  • Cut all your vegetables slightly larger than you think you should. They shrink a bit after sitting in the dressing
  • If making ahead, add the cottage cheese right before serving to maintain its texture

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