Salad recipes

Quick microwave chicken pasta primavera loaded with broccoli and carrots, tossed in a creamy ranch-parmesan sauce over fettuccine. Dinner on the table in under 10 minutes.

Minestrone pasta salad with kidney beans, chickpeas, carrots, bell pepper, and Parmesan tossed in Italian dressing. Served warm or cold in 25 minutes.

Italian pasta salad with rotini, broccoli, mozzarella, bell peppers, and a homemade basil-oregano vinaigrette. A make-ahead cold pasta dish for potlucks and picnics.

This is an easy and delicious dish to serve to guests that is easily scale-able. Pair it with a tossed salad and some garlic bread and it makes a quick, easy and elegant meal.

Cheese tortelloni tossed with stir-fried cabbage, red, yellow, and green bell peppers in olive oil with basil. A colorful vegetarian pasta dinner that comes together in one hour.

Customizable seafood casserole with your choice of tuna, shrimp, or crab in a creamy soup-and-cheese sauce over pasta. Pick your own topping from five crunchy options.

Cold pasta salad combines elbow macaroni with flaked tuna, red kidney beans, onion, parsley, and shredded Swiss cheese in a sharp white-vinegar vinaigrette. Italian-inspired protein-packed salad.

Cold pasta salad with cubed Spam, cheddar cheese, crunchy veggies, and a smoky BBQ-mustard-mayo dressing. No cooking required beyond boiling the pasta!

Chunky pesto with two kinds of basil, leftover chicken, pecans, and anchovies for depth. A no-cook sauce that turns pasta salad or hot pasta into a full meal.

Mexican-style bow ties: hearty pasta salad with seasoned ground beef, kidney beans, corn, tomatoes, cheddar, and a zippy yogurt-salsa dressing, topped with crushed tortilla chips. Warm or cold crowd-pleaser.

Summer vegetable spaghetti tossed with zucchini, yellow squash and green beans in a light tomato sauce with a pinch of chili powder. Low in fat, no oil needed, and just as good served cold as a pasta salad.

Here is a kind of throw together recipe I came up with: If you are entertaining you can garnish with fresh parsley and serve with a caesar salad, garlic bread and a nice chablis. The vegetables can vary. I've used mushrooms, spinach, cauliflower etc. Grouper works well with this because it has a lot of flavor. I've used fresh tuna and halibut but prefer grouper.

Stovetop chicken lasagna layered with ground chicken, cottage cheese, egg noodles, and crushed tomatoes in one skillet. All the lasagna flavor without the oven or the wait.

Jumbo pasta shells stuffed with ricotta, Parmesan, and egg, baked in a homemade basil tomato sauce and topped with melted mozzarella. Classic Italian comfort food.