Vegan BLT Pasta Salad
This vegan BLT pasta salad is the first of a series of budget recipes that I have been working on. It is a really cheap and easy recipe, but it tastes amazing! I love the really strong salty taste from the chickpea bacon and sundried tomatoes. Who would have thought that such simple ingredients would taste so good together?
This BLT Pasta Salad recipe is very versatile. It makes a great work lunch, warm and comforting salad, or you can even make a double batch and take it to a BBQ or potluck to share. It even works as a light summer dinner (or winter dinner warmed up).
When I serve this to my kids, I try not to put too much of the dressing, as it is quite salty. I also tend to leave off the sundried tomatoes, as they can be a very strong flavour for kids. I often sub out the sundried tomatoes for mini tomatoes instead.
If you’re looking for other healthy vegan salads, check out:
Creamy Basil Potato Salad with Chickpea Bacon
Peanut Veggie Salad
To Make Vegan BLT Pasta Salad
Cook your pasta according to the packet directions.
While the pasta is cooking, cook the bacon chickpeas, making sure to keep aside about 1/3 of the dressing for later.
Once the pasta and chickpeas are cooked, add the pasta, baby spinach and sun-dried tomatoes to the chickpeas. Pour over the remaining dressing. Toss until the baby spinach is just wilted.
Serve topped with vegan Parmesan, or store in an airtight container in the fridge for later.
Gluten Free: To make this Vegan BLT Pasta Salad gluten free, simply substitute gluten free pasta for the regular pasta. I do find that gluten free pasta tends to harden a bit on the top when stored, so the gluten free pasta salad may not store as well in the fridge.
Low FODMAP: To make this salad low FODMAP, use gluten free pasta, and limit the amount of sun-dried tomatoes. I find it works well if you substitute half of the sun-dried tomatoes with mini Roma tomatoes.
Vegan BLT Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 250 g Pasta
- 420g tin Chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup Sundried Tomatoes chopped
- 1 cup Baby Spinach
Bacon Chickpea Sauce Ingredients
- 3 tbs Soy Sauce
- 1.5 tbs Vegan Worcestershire Sauce
- 1.5 tbs Maple Syrup
- 1/2 tspn Smoked Paprika
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to packet directions.
- Meanwhile, while pasta is cooking, combine Bacon Chickpea Sauce ingredients in a small jug.
- Heat a frying pan to medium heat. When heated, add rinsed chickpeas to cook.
- Pour approximately 2/3 of the bacon chickpea sauce ingredients over the chickpeas. Reserve remaining sauce. Cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid has disappeared.
- Turn the heat down to low. Add pasta, sundried tomatoes and baby spinach to the chickpeas in the frying pan. Pour over the remaining bacon chickpea sauce.
- Stir until pasta is coated with sauce and baby spinach has wilted slightly.
- Either serve warm, topped with parmesan, or store in a sealed container in the fridge.
I just discovered your site. Reading some yummy recipes but do not see any nutrient values on any of your recipes. Is this something you cannot provide or can you.
Hi Vanita, I’m glad you like the recipes. I’ve had a few requests for nutritional information this week, so I’m going to start working on it!