Pasta Salad

Did you know Mother's Day is less than two weeks away? I just can't believe May is here tomorrow. Normally, I visit my Mom on Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. I bring her a gift and visit with her. My husband does the same and brings his Mom a gift. Since I have three sisters, I normally do not have to share my Mom on Saturday. My Mom gets to celebrate the whole weekend for Mother's Day. 

Normally, we spend Mother's Day doing yard work. However, this year I want to go on a picnic. I was hoping to bring the kids on a picnic before now but time has gone by so fast. We have invited our Mom's to join us if they would like. It would be really nice.

I figured I would make pasta salad with supper. I decided to try this recipe from food network's Sandwich King. I had to adapt this recipe a lot due to no asparagus. I already had macaroni noodles. Also, the original recipe did not have a lot of flavor. My oldest daughter told me an artist has to change 70% of a picture to claim it as their own. I'm not sure what the rule would be in cooking. I know if I go into the kitchen with no recipe and create a dish which wasn't inspired by another then I can claim it as my own. If I use another recipe, I would have to change it a lot before I will say it is mine. My oldest daughter insists this needs to be served cold. I liked it both ways. She also said she liked the shredded cheese better since she gets some in every bite. I will admit I added my frozen peas to my pasta water to save on dishes.

Pasta Salad
1 lb macaroni noodles
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp sugar
2 cloves of garlic, minced 
1/8 cup lemon juice
2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
10 plum tomatoes, cubed
1 cup cooked peas (optional)
1/4 cup roasted yellow peppers
2 sprigs of fresh dill
1 Tbsp oregano
1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Cook the pasta according to directions.
Mix the olive oil, mustard, sugar, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Make sure the ingredients are well incorporated.
Toss the olive oil mixture with the pasta.
Add the tomatoes, peas, peppers, dill, oregano, and cheese.
Toss well and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris

Did you already know......
-Distilled white vinegar is the most popular vinegar in America.
-Wine vinegars are more acidity in Europe than in America.
-Vinegar has been used for over 10,000 years.