Cucumber Pasta Salad with Goat Cheese

This is a salad I came up with when I was in the mood for a cold pasta dish, but didn't have some of the ingredients I traditionally use in pasta salads- such as tomatoes and artichoke hearts. I was actually pleasantly surprised how tasty this was. There wasn't much to it, so I knew there was a chance it could be bland, but it wasn't it. It's not exactly bursting with flavors, yet I think it is the simplicity is what makes it so refreshing.

The crispness of the vegetables pair so nicely with the creaminess of the goat cheese. A strong dressing would overwhelm this salad, so I'm glad I didn't go with a dijon vinaigrette as I was originally contemplating. I actually took the easy way out and used a small amount of bottle dressing instead of making my own, and it worked quite well. In order to keep this more monochromatic, I used tri-colored rotini and picked out the tomato ones (yes, I have some time on my hands.)

I enjoy cooking seasonally, but a summery-feeling dish was a nice change from the fall flavors I've been working with recently. Especially since it was still 90 degrees yesterday. Both of my guys enjoyed this pasta salad, and even though I was just playing around with the limited ingredients I had on hand, I could certainly see myself making this for a summer cookout. For a get-together, I would double or triple it; as written, it would only serve about 4 as a side.

2 cups rotini or other short pasta

1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced

1/3 green bell pepper, chopped

1 stalk of celery, diced

1 tsp chopped fresh parsley

3 tbsp bottled Italian dressing (I used Newman's Own Organic Tuscan Italian)

1 tbsp light mayo (I use the kind with olive oil)

kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

2 oz goat cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions. Cool under running water.

In a serving bowl, combine pasta with vegtables, parsely, dressing and mayo. Season with salt and pepper, cover and chill for a few hours or overnight.

Before serving, add crumbled goat cheese and toss gently. (If salad seems dry, add more dressing a tablespoon at a time.)