Shrimp Pasta Salad

Simple, easy, lightly dressed pasta salad with shrimp and it's perfect for summertime picnics!

New England weather is totally nuts! We went from the furnace kicking on on Monday to the temperatures soaring to ninety degrees on Wednesday. My husband went from layered clothing to a tee-shirt for work. With the weather change we also are changing what we eat. Personally I am tired of cooking and eating beef, pork and chicken and have been craving seafood. On Tuesday I picked up two beautiful cod loins to make my Herb Crusted Cod Loin dinner. Then with temperatures still high I pulled out some shrimp from the freezer and put together this easy and tasty pasta salad.
There's about a pound of shrimp in the recipe. I got a great deal on some large 16 to 20 count shrimp which worked perfectly for making this summertime salad. It's light, refreshing and it's not pork, beef or chicken! I dressed it very lightly with two ingredients and a little bit of salt and black pepper. You don't want to overpower the shrimp and that's my reasoning behind the dressing.

• 2 cups dry pasta - I used elbows
• 1 lb. 16-20 ct shrimp - peeled, deveined and boil per package directions
• 1/3 cup celery - small dice
• 2/3 cup onion - small dice
• 1/3 cup roasted red peppers - small dice
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 3 tbsp. Italian dressing - I used Wishbone Robusto Italian
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 pinch salt

1. Peel and clean your shrimp and add them to salted boiling water. I had what they call Pink Shrimp and cooked them for two minutes. Once cooked, drain and shock in ice water to prevent them from cooking more. Set aside.
2. Cook your pasta according to box directions.
3. Prep the celery, onion and roasted red peppers - all very small dice.
4. To make the dressing, combine the mayonnaise, Italian dressing, black pepper and salt and mix well to combine. Makes about 2/3 cup.
5. In a large bowl add the pasta, the celery, onions and roasted red peppers.
6. Cut each shrimp into thirds or fourths depending on size and add to the bowl.
7. Add the dressing to the pasta and shrimp and toss to coat. Refrigerate for about 20 minutes then serve.

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 9 minutes total
Serves: 6-8 portions
Cost: approximately $8.13, serving 6 for $1.35 each or serving 8 for $1.01 each
 

Serve up some deliciously easy Shrimp Pasta Salad for your summertime picnics at home, or pack them in mason jars for at the beach!