When chewy, slurpable pasta is involved you just know it’s going to be a good day. This flavorful, nourishing, and oil free Healthy Italian Spaghetti Salad is what dreams are made of and sure to have you doing your happy dance. Tasty pasta and veggies drenched in a tangy Italian herby sauce makes for a wholesome and delicious dish that’s perfect for picnics, work lunches, or potlucks. We hope you love this week’s awesome Whip It Up Wednesday recipe.
Whole Food Plant Based recipe, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
This week’s Whip It Up Wednesday is our bomb-diggity Healthy Italian Spaghetti Salad. Just about everyone loves an awesome cold noodle salad. Right? We scarfed it down in a flash, so good and tastes just like the real healthy deal.
Deli-Style
Back in the day, we shopped at a locally owned small grocery store that sold an awesome deli-style Italian spaghetti salad that Dad used to buy all the time. We absolutely loved it. It was a cold tomato-based spaghetti salad with green bell peppers, diced tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, diced red onions, and black olive slices. Simple, but oh so tasty.
We would typically feast on this yummy salad along with a wide array of other Italian deli foods every Saturday for lunch. It was literally a given that you could always find this salad in our fridge every Saturday, and it was usually gone by Sunday afternoon. Lol
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Healthy remake
Mom and I wanted to recreate this dish, so we purchased some to analyze it for Whole Food Plant Based conversion. It had been forever since we bought this salad, but remember it so fondly. Using WFPB compliant ingredients, we set out to create the perfect Italian Dressing for this tasty cold spaghetti salad!
The real test was getting Dad to try it. He was super excited when he saw this dish and learned that we converted it. He absolutely loved it. He was so happy! The fun part is that it is so easy to make.
Whip it up Wednesday
As you already know, every Wednesday, we feature a quick and easy recipe that can be “whipped up” in 20 minutes or less. This recipe can be made in about 20 minutes which really helps speed things up in the kitchen.
The tangy flavors coupled with all that lovely texture, it’s completely healthy and delicious, boasting no oil, no highly processed ingredients, and no refined sugar. It makes for a great take-to-work lunch. We LOVE it! Give it a try! It is totally awesome!
We hope you enjoy our new Whip It Up Wednesday quick and easy ideas!
If you try it, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
Products Used:
- Medium stock pot to boil the spaghetti
- Colander to rinse the noodles
Healthy Italian Spaghetti Salad
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 9 Minutes (Pasta)
- Total Time: 19 Minutes
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
When chewy, slurpable pasta is involved you just know it’s going to be a good day. This flavorful, nourishing, and oil free Healthy Italian Spaghetti Salad is what dreams are made of and sure to have you doing your happy dance. Tasty pasta and veggies drenched in a tangy Italian herby sauce makes for a wholesome and delicious dish that’s perfect for picnics, work lunches, or potlucks. We hope you love this week’s awesome Whip It Up Wednesday recipe.
Whole Food Plant Based recipe, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Ingredients
- 12 oz. spaghetti, cooked and rinsed in cold water *
- 2 baby English cucumbers (or 1 cup), small dice
- ½ green bell pepper, small dice
- ½ cup red onion, fine dice
- ½ cup sliced black olives (optional)
Dressing Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons + 1 ½ teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons + 1 ½ teaspoons white wine vinegar *
- 1 Tablespoons water
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons tahini
- 1 teaspoon miso*
- ½ teaspoon organic maple syrup
- 2 ½ to 3 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried minced onion flakes
- ¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt (+/- to taste) *
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon celery seed (optional)
- ½ cup canned petite diced tomatoes (drained) or fresh seeded tomatoes
Toppings
- Finely chopped flat leaf parsley
Instructions
- Add all the dressing ingredients (except the petite diced tomatoes) into a bowl, whisk well to combine, then add the petite diced tomatoes, mix well again, then set aside.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente, then drain and rinse well with cold water until all the pasta is cold. Shake off excess water, then place in a large bowl.
- Add the cucumbers, green bell peppers, red onions, and black olives to the pasta, then drizzle half of the dressing over mixture. Mix well. Then drizzle additional dressing over the mixture as need to dress the salad. You may have some dressing left over. Save any leftover dressing as the pasta tends to drink up the dressing and you may need it to liven up the salad later.
- Best served immediately after dressing the salad. Can be served cold from the refrigerator (Please see notes about pasta types.) If refrigerated, remove the salad from the fridge and allow to sit for 30 minutes. This allows the seasonings to wake up. Add any remaining dressing (if needed) and gently toss. Sprinkle with chopped flat leaf parsley, if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.
Notes
*Miso: We used Miso Master Organic Mellow White Premium Lite Miso, Certified Gluten Free. Miso really lends itself to balancing flavors when you don’t use oil. You can also substitute with chickpea miso for a soy free version.
*White Wine Vinegar: Highly recommended to use a mild white wine vinegar with a lower acidity. Taste your vinegar first, if very acidic/tart, use a less amount.
*Pasta: We used a gluten free pasta (brown rice base); however, if you do not need to be gluten free, you can use your favorite pasta of choice. Please keep in mind that certain types/brands of gluten free pasta can get hard/crunchy when refrigerated. We found that Jovial Gluten Free Pasta does not get crunchy when refrigerated. If your gluten free pasta gets hard/crunchy after refrigerating, only make enough pasta that you plan to eat immediately with dressing. Start with a little dressing and build up to the desired amount and refrigerate any left over dressing for the next time you make the pasta.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Servings: 4
*Storage: Refrigerate and use within 5 days.
*Nutrition Information: Does not include optional add-in of sliced black olives.
This post contains affiliate links, and we may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures! For more information, see our disclosures here.
OH MY!!!! On my rotation for this week…how yummy. Again, my deepest thanks for bringing the WFPBNO lifestyle and meals to everyone!
Hi there Jenna 🙂
Woo Hoo! We hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do! It’s our pleasure to share our passion for food. 😀 Thank you so much for your continued support and kindness! We truly appreciate you!
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Do you think I could use this dressing on a green Italian salad? That is, substituting greens for the pasta??
Hi there Jane 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us! We haven’t tried this dressing on greens, but we don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
I made this for lunch today. It was delicious! So easy to make and so flavorful. Thanks for sharing the recipe!!
Hi there Cynthia 🙂
Yaaaayyy!! We are so excited that you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback and taking the time to write!
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
This is so good! Going to have it for lunch taking it out to a park for a picnic. My only changes were a yellow pepper instead of green (my husband’s preference–his parents wouldn’t eat green peppers and he seems to have acquired the anti-green pepper gene!) and added capers (like them and had some in a big jar that I wanted to use up). It’s so flavorful and so different from the typical pasta salad. I should have done some antipasto stuff on the side, like artichokes and chickpeas. Oh well, next time—and there will definitely be a next… Read more »
Hi there Ellen 🙂 Woot!!! We are so glad that you and your husband enjoyed this spaghetti salad. We LOVE the idea of adding in those tasty briney cappers – YUM! We are beyond happy that you love the dressing too and that it holds up next to a favorite salad dressing you’ve been using 😀 Tomatoes are awesome both for flavor and health benefits, and we love this news about correlation of men who eat lots of tomatoes get much less prostate cancers – the miracles of mother nature. Thank you so much for all your awesome feedback, input,… Read more »
This is the bomb-diggity–and an absolute keeper. I upped the veggies–used the entire onion, entire pepper, because I realized I had cooked 16 oz of pasta instead of 12. I used all the dressing. The only change was in my olives–used kalamata instead of black. I think next time I’ll add white beans and maybe some spinach to add even more WFPB goodness, but this is truly great as written. And honestly, I don’t say that lightly! Thank you for what you do–your site is the one I look to first for new recipes, because I know they’re awesome! 🙂
Hi there Pam 🙂
Woo Hoo!!! We are so excited you thought this recipe is the bomb-diggity and a keeper! We love how you made this recipe your own and love the delicious adjustments – YUM! Thank you SO much for your incredible feedback and taking the time to write! We truly appreciate you and your support! <3
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Thank you so much for the Spaghetti Salad Recipe. One of my favorite recipes was what we call Linguini Salad. It calls for Salad Supreme which unfortunately contains dairy. Your salad looks and sounds like it should be very close to what I remember.
Hi there Jamie 🙂
It is our pleasure! We hope that you give this recipe a try and enjoy it as much as we do.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Excellent. I used chickpea pasta. I doubled the veggies, including the addition of mushrooms because, well, mushrooms ❤️ Since I doubled the veggies the sauce amount was perfect. As always these recipes are wonderful. The beauty of this sauce is that you can make it with any veggies on hand.
Hi there Bonnie 🙂
Yaaaay! We are so thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing how you made this recipe your own. We truly appreciate your kind words and support! Thank you so much for your awesome feedback and for taking the time to write!
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
This is like gazpacho on steroids! I love it!!!! Thank you so much!
Hi there Sally 🙂
Woo hoo!!! We are so excited to hear that you enjoyed this recipe. We appreciate you sharing your awesome feedback and for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
STOP what you’re doing and go make this right now. Trust me on this.
What Ameera does for pasta is nearly sinful. And for ME, having that much pasta in the house at one time is going to be dangerous. ESPECIALLY the way this tastes.
I have already had two servings, and that was just the taste test!! LOL
Hi there Vikki 🙂
Yaaaay!!! We are SUPER excited you enjoyed this recipe. Totally with you on the love for pasta – it’s the best! Thank you so much for your endorsement of this recipe! We truly appreciate you, your FANTASTIC feedback and for taking the time to write. *HUGS*
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
This made a most delicious lunch today. And so quick and easy to prepare! It’s so nice to have another pasta salad recipe (but not the ‘norm’). Definitely will be making this again.
And as always, looking forward to leftovers. ;o)
Hi there Sandra 🙂
It is sooo good! We really love this recipe and we are super happy that you enjoyed it as well! Thank YOU so much for another awesome review! We appreciate you!
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
This looks right in my lane. I’ll give it a try. Curious if you can tell me what size pasta was used in the original deli version …. was it a super think #1 capellini or something bigger?
Hi there Brenda 🙂
Thank you for your question. We used regular spaghetti when making this dish. We hope you give this recipe a try and enjoy it as much as we do.
-Ameera and Robin
OMG, you guys! I’ve been looking high and low for a great pasta salad with no oil and I found it. The taste is pure perfection and it has a kick too. I made it exactly as written except I didn’t have black olives but Castelvetrano olives so I used those. You’re adding tomatoes into the salad dressing is pure genius. Thank you again for another keeper recipe. I’m so grateful for your site.
Hi there Elaine,
We apologize for the late response, this review got away from us. YAYYY!!! We are so happy that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you so much for the awesome review.
-Ameera and Robin