Bow-Tie Cowboy Pasta Salad

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Servings: 10
Yield: 10 servings

Description

This bow-tie cowboy pasta salad recipe features a fun medley of bow-tie pasta, mushrooms, bacon bits, cheese, and veggies in a creamy ranch dressing.

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) package bow-tie pasta (such as Barilla®)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup creamy salad dressing (such as Miracle Whip®)
1/4 cup milk
1 (1 ounce) package ranch dressing mix (such as Hidden Valley®)
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
2 cups chopped broccoli florets
1 (16 ounce) can mushroom stems and pieces
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup bacon bits
1/3 cup diced red onion
1/3 cup chopped green onion

Directions

1 Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook bow-tie pasta in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 12 minutes. Drain; rinse with cold water.
2 Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add peas; cook and stir until heated through, about 5 minutes. Cool.
3 Meanwhile, combine salad dressing, milk, ranch mix, and garlic salt in a large bowl until smooth; add broccoli, mushrooms, ½ cup Cheddar cheese, bacon bits, red onion, green onion, and cooled peas and mix thoroughly.
4 Mix pasta into salad; top with remaining ½ cup Cheddar cheese and refrigerate until ready to serve.