tahini-dill pasta salad

Well hello everyone. Yes, I’m back and much sooner than I expected! You all were just so supportive of my fatigue and general blahness- thank you for all your kind words, encouragement and advice. I’m still about the same, although mentally and emotionally feeling better, and you all were a part of that so thank you!. It’s the Victoria Day long weekend in Canada (or May 2-4 as we like to call it) coming up and since you were all so wonderful I felt inspired and decided to type up this post for a pasta salad I made a little while ago.

Pasta salad is the perfect summer dish. It is made ahead of time and you can do it in the evening or early morning when it’s cooler out to save you from slaving over a hot stove in the middle of the day. Plus, it’s a dish that just screams picnic or barbeque, really any summer gathering! Definitely May 2-4 material!

This pasta salad was more of an accident than anything. I had a craving for tahini and decided to whip up some tahini sauce for lunch. Spotted some fresh dill in the fridge so I threw that in! Seeing as I’m trying to increase the amount of iron I’m taking in (last doctor’s appointment revealed stats still aren’t great, so another month of intense iron pills for me, YAY), I’ve been incorporating more legumes into my diet. So I decided chickpeas would be a fantastic vehicle for the sauce. But wait! I needed some veggies too- what goes great with tahini and dill? Well tomatoes and cucumbers of course! I mixed in all up and it tasted great! The only problem was, there was a lot of sauce covering those chickpeas and vegetables and while I appreciated the sauciness (I’m a saucy lady dontcha know), it needed something to pull it all together. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw it- pasta! So I cooked up some pasta, threw it in will the chickpeas and let it chill. Finished with fresh ground pepper and red pepper flakes, I had a delicious and fresh pasta salad that would rival any mayo-based pasta salad out there!

This pasta salad is light and oh so springy thanks to the lemon and dill and the chickpeas and brown rice pasta ensure it has some staying power. Served up with some steamed kale, this meal covers all your bases, including being happy and satisfied :)

Tahini-Dill Pasta Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free)

Serves 4 as a main, or 6-8 as a side.

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp coconut aminos (or Bragg’s, soy sauce, nama shoyu, etc.)
• 2-3 tbsp chopped dill

Salad:

• 1 1/3 cup dry brown rice macaroni (or other bite-sized pasta), cooked according to package directions
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed well (or 1 1/2 cups cooked from dry chickpeas)
• 1 very large tomato (or 2 small), chopped small
• 1/2 a large cucumber, chopped small
• lots of fresh ground pepper
• 3 generous pinches red pepper flakes (optional)

Cook the pasta according to package directions and set aside to cool.

Whisk the dressing ingredients together until emulsified and set aside.

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss to mix.

Put in the fridge for 30 minutes or until chilled. It’s best when left for a few hours so all the flavours can meld together!

Garnish with a sprig of dill and squeeze of lime and you’re all set. Dig in!

Hope you all have a lovely long weekend (or regular one for all my other readers)! I’ll be working Saturday and Monday, but at least I get a bit of time-and-a-half pay out of it ;)

I am submitting this post to Allergy-Friendly Fridays, Foodie Friday,  Chilin’ & Grillin’ BBQ Event, and Wellness Weekends!