Creamy Bowtie Pasta Salad Recipe (2024)

ByEmilieApril 7, 2018March 20, 2024March 20, 2024

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Bowtie pasta salad can be enjoyed as a light meal or served as a side dish at dinner. This creamy pasta salad without mayo is loaded with soft bow tie pasta and fresh vegetables. You’ll love how easy it is to make this light and refreshing dish that can customized to include your favorite vegetables. Serve this creamy pasta salad for your next potluck, summer cookout or picnic and watch it disappear!

Love bowtie pasta salad? Me too! I think farfalle pasta, also known as butterfly or bowtie pasta, makes for a very pretty pasta salad when paired with lots of colorful vegetables. This easy recipe will blow your mind when you taste the flavor in this creamy pasta salad dressing without mayo. It was the perfect side dish to bring to the teachers at school for a potluck during conferences recently.

Bowtie Pasta Salad Ingredients

To make this bow tie pasta salad recipe, you’ll need the following simple ingredients:

• farfalle pasta: Either traditional bowtie pasta or mini bowtie pasta works great. You can use other pasta varieties for this salad including macaroni, rotini or mini shells if preferred.
• orange or yellow bell peppers: One or a combination of these sweet peppers is perfect.
• red bell pepper: Green bell pepper can be substituted if needed.
• English cucumber: This is my favorite cucumber for the best pasta salad recipes, but you can use Persian cucumber, which is quite similar. You can also substitute your favorite cucumber variety. I recommend peeling them if you are using a cucumber where the skin is thick or tough.
• green onion: Red onion also works well and would add some great flavor and color.
• cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes: I recommend cutting them in half for easier eating. If you are using larger, juicy tomatoes instead, you may want to consider removing the seeds.
• Italian dressing
• Caesar dressing
• Parmesan cheese: You can also use fresh mozzarella, feta cheese, colby jack or even sharp cheddar instead.
• fresh parsley: Used for garnish only. You could also use sliced ribbons of fresh basil instead.

This bowtie pasta salad can be changed up to fit your personal preferences. I used peppers, green onion, cucumbers and tomatoes for mine but you can substitute other vegetables like broccoli and add other favorite cold pasta salad ingredients like cheese, green olives, black olives or pepperoni. If you’d like to make this a complete meal, you could add in some cooked chicken.

How to Make Creamy Bowtie Pasta Salad

To make this good pasta salad, you’ll want to start by preparing your pasta noodles. Cook them following the package instructions for al dente pastain a large pot. Immediately rinse your bow-tie pasta in cold water.

Creamy Pasta Salad Dressing

Many pasta salads use Italian dressing for their zesty flavor like this tri color pasta salad or thisItalian pasta salad. But did you know you can mix it with another dressing to make it both creamy and so good? Simply mix equal parts Italian dressing and Caesar dressing in a small mixing bowl and whisk together. Now you have an amazing pasta salad dressing! Add in some grated Parmesan cheese to give this dressing some big flavor. I added Caesar dressing to my loaded potato salad and it took the flavor over the top!

In a large mixing bowl, add your chopped vegetables and cooled pasta. Pour over your creamy salad dressing and gently mix together. Pour into a large serving bowl and top with fresh parsley, additional shredded Parmesan cheese and cherry tomatoes, if desired. Cover and refrigerate at least four hours.

Mini Bow-Tie Pasta Salad

To make it a bit easier to eat I like to use mini farfalle in my bowtie pasta salad recipes. Have you ever tried it in a pasta salad before? It works great for kids and to get more of the pasta salad flavors in a single bite.

Pasta Salad Tip:

Want to prepare your pasta in advance to save time later? You can! Simply cook, rinse thoroughly with cold water, let air dry and then store in a ziploc bag or airtight container in your fridge up to a few days ahead of time. If you start with all cold ingredients, including your dressing and pasta, you don’t need to let your prepared salad sit as long in the refrigerator before serving. You can also cut up the other vegetables a day in advance, although I recommend waiting on the tomatoes until the day you serve it.

This easy pasta salad recipe feeds a crowd and will be a hit at your next cookout or celebration. Serve it with these grilled pork chops and a refreshing glass of limeade for a great summer side dish. Leftover bow tie pasta salad is a great way to enjoy something different for lunch!

Trust me, guests will love this zesty pasta salad. It was hard to keep my hands off it.

What is your favorite creamy pasta salad recipe?