Slapdash Salad

Last night, I did not get a post out, and I apologize. My wife was out and I was at home to do dinner and bedtime duties solo, so I was a bit busy. However, I do want to let you in on a quick and easy way to elevate pasta salads.

Grilled zucchini and red pepper

I was prepping an easy orzo salad last night with fresh mozzarella, basil - I had meant for it to be a caprese salad but the kids had eaten all of the tomatoes earlier in the week - and I was poking around for some other veggies to put into this salad. I had a little zucchini leftover from earlier in the week, and some red peppers. So to give these ingredients a little extra flavor I gave them a quick coating in olive oil and tossed them onto a hot grill.

Grilled chicken thighs

I had the grill on for the chicken I was making already, so why now? It's quick and easy and adds some great flavor to the ingredients. I quartered the pepper and put it on, and the zucchini were already cut into slices so I threw those on as they were. Normally if I cut zucchini specifically to be grilled I cut longer pieces than I had - more on the diagonal - to maximize the cooking area where I can develop those lovely grill flavors.

Finished orzo salad

This all was finished off with a pre-made Italian salad dressing, some additional balsamic vinegar, and some chopped fresh basil. This was just something I was throwing together, and not really a recipe per se, but many of my cold pasta salads are kind of like that. What are some recipes or things you like to include in pasta salad? Let us know on Facebook or in the comments below!