Harvest Pasta Salad

Thanksgiving is finally upon us and I couldn’t be happier! When I started looking forward to this year’s spread, I thought to myself, it might be nice to have a little variety in side dishes when it comes to the typical mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and stuffing. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the traditional side dishes, but sometimes it’s nice to throw in a fresh addition that complements the meal and doubles as a really good leftover. Harvest Pasta Salad adds the perfect amount of sweet and savory to your Thanksgiving dinner or pairs nicely on it’s own for another occasion!

Ingredients

1/2 of a 16 oz package of pasta (any type of fun shape or shell)

1 cup roasted pecans chopped

1 head of broccoli chopped

1/3 cup red onion chopped

2 cups seedless red grapes halved

8 pieces of bacon chopped and well cooked

1 cup mayonnaise

5 tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 and toast the pecans for 5-7 minutes or until fragrant.

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Be sure not to over cook the pasta. Leave a little bite to the noodles so that they doesn’t get soggy and they hold up in the fridge.

Bake the bacon in the oven until really crispy. You want a lot of crunch!

Chop the onion, broccoli, grapes and bacon.

Mix together mayo, sugar, vinegar and salt. Mix together the mayo sauce, pasta, broccoli, onion, and grapes. Chill in the fridge for a few hours. Top with the pecans and bacon before serving.

Enjoy!

CKS