This Southwest Pasta Salad brings all the bold, zesty flavors of a classic Southwest salad, with a summer grilling twist. It's loaded with hearty beans, sweet corn, spicy jalapeños, ripe tomatoes, crunchy tortilla chips, and Youngsters Mesquite BBQ Gouda. Sweet, smoky, and satisfying, it’s the ultimate grilling side dish. Let's get to it!
INGREDIENTS:
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 5 people
Honey Chipotle Dressing
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 3 chipotle peppers in adobo (comes in 7oz cans)
- 3 tbsp water
- 1/2 cup neutral oil canola, vegetable, or avocado
Southwest Pasta Salad
- 2 ears of corn, or 1 cup of loose kernels
- 1/2 lb pasta
- 3/4 cup black beans, rinsed, drained, and dried
- 1 jalapeño, seeds and pith removed, chopped
- 8 oz cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1 avocado, cubed
- 6 oz Artikaas Youngsters Mesquite BBQ Gouda, cubed
- tortilla chips *optional
HOW TO MAKE IT:
Honey Chipotle Dressing
- In a blender add red wine vinegar, chipotles, honey, water, and oil. Process until smooth.
- Season with salt to taste and store in the fridge until ready to dress the pasta salad.
Southwest Pasta Salad
- Preheat the grill to 450℉-500℉.
- Grill the corn for 10 minutes, rotating every few minutes to ensure even cooking. Kernels will be tender when done.
- Once cooked, allow to cool before cutting off the kernels.
- While the corn is cooking and cooling make the pasta as per packaging instructions in salty water. Drain and rinse the pasta in cold water to remove the starch.
- In a large bowl, add the corn kernels, pasta, black beans, jalapeño, tomatoes, avocado, and the cubed Youngsters Mesquite BBQ Gouda. Add the desired amount of dressing and toss to coat. If needed, add more dressing and salt to taste. Finish the salad by crushing the optional tortilla chips into the pasta salad.
