Cobb Pasta Salad
This Cobb pasta salad is a fun twist on the classic Cobb salad, loaded with pasta, crispy bacon, eggs, avocado, tomatoes, and plenty of flavor.
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 1 lb pasta cooked
- 6 strips bacon cooked and chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes halved
- ½ red onion finely diced
- 2 scallions finely sliced
- 6 large hard-boiled eggs chopped
- 1 ripe avocado chopped
- ¼ cup blue cheese crumbles optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Homemade Ranch Dressing
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 cup sour cream
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the mayo, sour cream, half and half, and ranch seasoning. Mix until well combined. It will be super thin at first, but it will thicken after sitting for a few minutes.
- In a separate bowl, combine all of the remaining ingredients and pour in most of the dressing, reserving about 1/2 cup. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then give everything a good mix and adjust the seasoning if needed. Refrigerate any leftover dressing in an airtight container, or add it all if you like your pasta salad extra creamy!
- I like to serve it right away, but you can also cover and refrigerate it until you’re ready to serve it chilled. Enjoy!
Notes
- Let the pasta cool first. Adding the dressing and toppings to hot pasta can make everything a little soggy.
- Cut the avocado right before serving so it stays fresh and doesn’t turn brown. You can also add a squeeze of lemon juice to the avocado to prevent it from browning.
- Cook the bacon until it’s nice and crispy for the best texture. I highly recommend baking it.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning before serving. Cold pasta usually needs a generous amount of salt and pepper.
- The dressing recipe makes quite a bit, so add it a little at a time until the pasta salad is as creamy as you like.
- Feel free to add rotisserie chicken, shrimp, or steak to this salad!
- Not a fan of blue cheese crumbles? Feta and goat cheese are wonderful in this salad as well!
Nutrition
Calories: 513kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 184mg | Sodium: 544mg | Potassium: 357mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 709IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 121mg | Iron: 1mg