Blueberry and Broccoli Pasta Salad with a tangy Lemon Buttermilk Dressing ~ spring forward with this colorful and healthy pasta salad made with gluten free pasta, lots of fruits and veggies, and an extra dose of crunch!
This salad was fun to fun to invent, and so easy to put together once I had all the flavors figured out., but honestly, when I told my husband I was making a salad with blueberries and broccoli he screwed up his face in the most annoying way. If you’re not sure about blueberries and broccoli just trust me ~ the first bite of this wonderful salad will convince you. It all starts with a box of naturally gluten free pasta made with chickpeas!
After cooking and draining, I toss the pasta with some of my lemony buttermilk dressing ~ it keeps the pasta from sticking together, and will also soak in a bit while I prep my other ingredients. This salad has an unusual mix of fresh veggies and fruit, along with dried fruit, nuts, and seeds. The end result is really wonderful, I love the contrast between the sweet and savory flavors
This salad is sophisticated enough for an adult palate, but also a great kid-pleaser ~ those juicy blueberries and crunchy apples can help introduce the joys of broccoli to your picky eaters,
You can make this healthy pasta salad recipe in the morning, it will hold up fine in the refrigerator. I like to refresh it with a little more dressing just before serving. The dressing is a tangy mixture of lemon juice, poppy seeds, buttermilk, and mayo…not as thick as most mayonnaise based dressings and so delicious I could eat it with a spoon! But if you’re a mayo lover, you might also try a classic salad cream dressing with this recipe.
Why are smart carbs so important?
So many of the carbs we consume in our Western diet are empty, overly processed carbohydrates like white bread and white rice. They’re wreaking havoc with our bodies and leading to all sorts of health problems like obesity and diabetes. But I love carbs, and I’m not about to do with out them, so I try to replace the empty ones with better choices. Good carbs, or smart carbs, are foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables and beans. You can instantly improve your diet by simply switching out refined flour pasta with this chickpea and lentil pasta, I love simple solutions like this!
The flavors in this salad work together so well, I hope you give it a try, I have a hunch it’ll become a family favorite. And if you have little ones who would live on pasta if they had their way, this is a really smart choice for them. My youngest daughter wanted ‘buttery pasta’ 24/7, I wish chickpea pasta had been around for me then 🙂
More pasta salads!
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Blueberry Broccoli Pasta Salad
Video
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (227g) Spiral Pasta, made from chickpeas or whole grains.
- 1 cup small broccoli florets
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 1/2 cup diced apples, tossed with lemon juice to prevent browning
- 1/3 cup golden raisins
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
dressing
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3 Tbsp buttermilk
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 Tbsp poppy seeds
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain and rinse the pasta in cold water to stop the cooking. Put in a bowl and drizzle with some of the dressing, toss gently.
- Put the broccoli in a microwave safe bowl with a tablespoon of water and microwave for 90 seconds. Drain.
- You can assemble the salad in two ways ~ You can arrange the ingredients on top of the pasta, and then dress and toss at the table, or you can mix everything together, it’s your call.
- Add just enough dressing to moisten the salad without drowning it, you can always add more later.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Notes:
- If you like, add some cheese to this salad, I think mild cheddar, Gouda, or Monterey Jack would work well, and cut it in a small dice.
- You can incorporate Chickapea pasta into any of your favorite pasta recipes, like my Israeli Pasta Salad, or my Pasta Salad with Tuna.
- If you can’t find Chickapea pasta at your local store, you can find it on Amazon, HERE.
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Now this looks like my kind of salad! I have it on my to-try list now! Thanks for sharing! YUMMED it also!
This is such a brilliant combination! I need to try this. Looks fantastic!
Wow, that’s an interesting combo. I love pasta salads but I have never tried mixing noodles with blueberries. Awesome idea!
Thanks Igor, I think it’s always more fun to try something new!
I love this beautiful pasta salad, and blueberries with broccoli sounds incredible! I want to use that dressing on EVERYTHING.
What a beautiful salad Sue, love all the color and textures. The buttermilk dressing sounds like the perfect compliment to this. Will have to pick up a box of chickpea pasta for sure.
I love this… So fresh, beautiful and feels like spring. i’m crazy about this pasta, my favorite gluten-free pasta of all times . Working on a special dish myself…
I can’t wait to see what you come up with No Crumbs Left!
What a good looking salad, I love the buttermilk dressing.
I think I could live on buttermilk, it makes everything better.
Sue. This pasta salad is making me yearn in all in the important places. Fo’ realz. I just want to shove it in my mouth allllllll day. That sounds dirty. I don’t mean it that way. I’m just hungry. And man ALIVE this is beautiful. I love Chickapea pasta – it’s my new go to when I make dinner. I don’t even eat gluten-free food but it’s so close to regular pasta, and so much healthier, I use it all the time. Thanks for inspiring my dinner!!
Haha, thanks Kristy, I’m glad I could inspire you. And I know it sounds like a sale hype, but I honestly agree with you that there’s no reason not to switch to Chickapea, it tastes the same and there are so many nutritional benefits. It’s a win win. Thanks for commenting!
Great delicious looking salad, Sue! Very colorful and healthy but I’d probably add a little cheese to the mix. I will be making this in the future, when it warms up and the snow melts! Thanks for the recipe!
Yes, cheese is a great addition, I highly recommend that ~ I’m going to make it with little chunks of Gouda or cheddar next time.
This looks really good. I’m one of those people who could eat pasta 24/7, so I’m glad to hear about this healthier brand. Actually I just started to notice a bunch of gluten free pastas at the store, so I’ll look for Chickapea, thanks Sue!
If you eat a lot of pasta you’re going to be so happy with Chickapea, I’ve tried several other gluten free pastas and they can be gummy and have a weird texture, but this one is pretty much identical to regular pasta, they nailed it 🙂