Green Salad with Pasta, Chicken Sausage, and Lemon Tahini Dressing

Hello friends and happy weekend!  I hope you are all having a great start to your April!  It’s not quite warm enough to be Farmer’s Market season here in Colorado but I am loving all of the Spring produce in the grocery stores right now.  Even though it is technically Springtime, it’s still a little wintery from time to time where I live so I wanted to come up with an easy and healthy meal that would transfer nicely from colder, snowy days to warm, sunny weather.  So, I created this salad.

It utilizes Spring produce that is just starting to emerge but also includes some pantry staples thrown into the mix.  It’s a hearty, stick-to-your-ribs salad that is still healthy and refreshing.

For this recipe, I use dark green leaf lettuce – I love baby gem lettuce, but any leafy and tender lettuce would work!  Romaine or Bibb lettuce would also be superb.  I then throw in some bright and sweet cherry tomatoes and refreshing cucumber along with jarred artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, pepperoncini, and marinated red onions.  And the not-so-secret ingredient?  Penne pasta!  I absolutely love adding pasta to a green salad.  It adds a wonderful texture and a little extra umph while still keeping the meal light.  Add in some shaved Asiago cheese, toss with the tangy and garlicky Lemon Tahini Dressing, and top with sauteed chicken sausage.  Add a sprinkle of flaked sea salt and you’ve got a delightfully flavorful and satisfying meal.  It’s green salad meets Mediterranean-inspired pasta salad and it’s lovely. 

Eat well and enjoy!

Ingredient Details and Abby's Tips

• How Much Salad does this Recipe Make? – The measurements for this salad are somewhat eyeballed – It can differ based on how big the veggies are (i.e., the tomatoes and artichoke hearts) and personal preference.  With that being said, the measurements below make about two big salads. 

• Meal Prepping Salad for the Week – This salad is so easy to meal prep for the week!  Simply make your dressing ahead of time, wash and chop up the veggies, cook your pasta, shave the cheese, and slice and brown the sausage.  Store everything separately in the refrigerator.  You can pre-toss your salad fixings in one container the night before you’re going to have them for lunch or dinner, add the amount of dressing you will need in a separate small container, and then add your dressing when you’re ready to eat! 

• The Dressing
  • Storing the Leftover Dressing – Because this dressing uses real, healthy oils; it will solidify in the refrigerator.  No worries though! It is super easy to liquify!  Just pull it out of the fridge about 30 minutes or so before using to let it “melt." Give it a good shake or whisk to mix everything together.  Alternately, you can put the jar of dressing in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes, until the oil liquifies (just try and avoid water getting into the lid). Again, give it a good shake or whisk to mix it up. 
  • The Tahini – Tahini can separate easily and become part liquid and part solid.  Avoid using any clumps that are too solid because they may not mix well with the rest of the dressing.  Giving the tahini a good stir before using can help eliminate this!
  • The Garlic and Ginger – I use grated instead of minced because it has less of a bite and makes for a smoother dressing.  You can also use garlic powder and dried ground ginger for this recipe if that’s all you have on hand. They may give a slightly different flavor but will still work well!  If you do this, I would use about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon garlic powder and about ¼ teaspoon dried ground ginger.

• The Lettuce – I love gem leaf lettuce for this because it is tender and already small so there is not much prep work for it.  However, any type of lettuce you prefer would work.  Red or green lettuce, romaine, or butter lettuce would also work great!

• The Fresh Tomatoes – Tomatoes add a nice freshness to this salad and compliment the acidity of the other ingredients.  Cherry or grape tomatoes work best but you could also use sliced or chopped larger tomatoes.

• The Cucumber – I love using English cucumber for this salad because they are usually a bit sweeter.  However, any cucumber would work!  If you have a larger cucumber, I would cut in half and then thinly slice half-moons.   

• The Artichokes Hearts – I normally use plain artichokes in water for this recipe.  However, oil packed or marinated would also work great!  If your artichoke hearts are on the larger side, you can quarter them instead of halving them. 

• The Sundried Tomatoes – These add a great texture and slight sweetness to the other, more acidic ingredients in this recipe.  I prefer plain sundried tomatoes packed in olive oil.  However, marinated or dry tomatoes would also work!

• The Red Onion – I like to marinate thinly sliced red onions in extra virgin olive oil, balsamic, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and Italian spices for a few days to use in this recipe.  However, you can also use store bought marinated onions, pickled red onions, or even thinly sliced raw red onions for this recipe!  I do like the sharpness that red onions add but feel free to use yellow, white, or even green onions if you prefer!

• The Pepperoncini – The pepperoncini adds a beautiful flavor and crunch without adding much heat.  You can buy these already sliced or buy whole peppers and slice them yourself.  You could also use banana pepper or hot peppers as well.  

• The Cheese – I really like Asiago or Parmesan Reggiano cheese for this salad.  The salty nuttiness of these cheeses go well with the fresh and acidic ingredients.  I also prefer shaved cheese because it melds nicely into the salad.  However, feel free to explore other cheeses if you aren’t a fan of Asiago or Parmesan – fresh mozzarella would also be delicious! 

• The Pasta – I used whole wheat penne pasta for this recipe because I had some on hand, but feel free to use whatever short past you would like – And it does not have to be whole wheat.  Fusilli or bowtie pasta would work great.  For the pasta, you’ll want to cook it al dente according to package directions, making sure to add a good dash of salt to the boiling water before adding in your pasta. 
  • Rinsing your Pasta – When the pasta is tender, drain in a colander and rinse with cold water.  I do not normally rinse my pasta; but you’ll want to for a cold pasta dish to stop the cooking and remove excess starch.  If you skip the rinsing step, the past could become mushy. 
  • What is Al Dente? – Literally translated as “to the tooth,” al dente pasta is what many consider the ideal consistency of pasta when cooked.   It is somewhat firm (although not hard or chalky) and has a bit of a bite while still being tender.  Because the pasta will cook longer once added to the cheese sauce, you’ll want to make sure to cook it just slightly less than the full time on the package to avoid mushy pasta.  Usually, a package of pasta will have al dente directions…  But if not, it’s a safe bet to boil the pasta 2 to 3 minutes less than what the package says to get that al dente bite.  You’ll want the pasta to have somewhat of a toothsome bite without being hard or chalky.  If it is still hard, boil for a minute longer.   

• The Sausage – I prefer to use already fully cooked chicken sausage for this recipe but any sausage will work!  Andouille, Italian, or Kielbasa would be equally delicious!  If you are not using pre-cooked sausage, just make sure it is cooked through before adding it to your salad – I would go by package directions if they are included. 
  • Here is my one of my chicken sausages: Gilbert's Craft Sausages - Caprese Chicken Sausage

• The Flaked Sea Salt – This is totally optional but I love adding a sprinkling of flaked sea salt to my salads.  It adds a wonderful crunch and a bright, slightly salty bite, bringing out all of the wonderful flavors in this salad. 
  • Here is my favorite flaked sea salt: Maldon Salt