BLT Pasta Salad (Printable)

Crisp bacon, cherry tomatoes, and lettuce combined with pasta and creamy dressing for a refreshing dish.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 10 oz short pasta (rotini, penne, or fusilli)

→ Bacon

02 - 7 oz streaky bacon, diced

→ Vegetables

03 - 7 oz cherry tomatoes, halved
04 - 3.5 oz romaine lettuce, chopped
05 - 1 small red onion, finely diced
06 - 1 avocado, diced (optional)

→ Dressing

07 - ½ cup mayonnaise
08 - ¼ cup sour cream
09 - 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
10 - 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
11 - 1 garlic clove, minced
12 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Garnish

13 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives or parsley

# Directions:

01 - Boil short pasta in salted water according to package directions until al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
02 - Cook diced bacon in a skillet over medium heat until golden and crisp, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
03 - Combine mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl; whisk until smooth.
04 - In a large bowl, mix cooled pasta, cherry tomatoes, chopped lettuce, red onion, avocado if using, and cooked bacon.
05 - Pour dressing over salad and toss gently to coat all ingredients evenly.
06 - Sprinkle with chopped chives or parsley. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 2 hours before serving.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in under 40 minutes, which means you can make it the morning of your gathering without stress.
  • The bacon stays crispy somehow, even when the whole thing sits in the fridge for hours—the secret is in when you add it.
  • People always ask for the recipe, and you get to be the one who brought the dish everyone remembered.
02 -
  • Add the bacon right before serving, not hours ahead—I learned this the hard way when my beautiful crispy bacon turned soft and chewy by noon.
  • Don't chop your lettuce until the last moment, because it gets sad and limp quickly once it's exposed to air and the salty dressing.
  • The dressing needs salt, but taste as you go because the bacon, mustard, and garlic already bring salt to the party.
03 -
  • Cooling your pasta properly is the unsung hero of this dish—warm pasta breaks down vegetables and makes the whole thing mushy.
  • Make your dressing in the order listed above, and you'll notice the mayo and sour cream get brighter and lighter as the lemon and mustard transform them.
  • A light hand with tossing keeps everything from turning into mush, and saves your avocado from being smashed into the dressing.
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