Healthy Pasta Salad ~ any such thing?

dargytaylor

I recently made a batch of pasta salad, knowing the mayo would make it high in calories....BUT......Holy *kitten*, i had no idea that a serving was 500 calories until I put the ingredients into the recipe builder!! DAMN!! I LOVE this pasta salad! Any suggestions for lightening up? I even cut the pasta in half and upped the veggies, but still came in way over what i am looking for in calorie content

avskk

Stick with cutting the pasta and upping veggies, but try a tasty pesto (traditional basil, sun-dried tomato, pea-and-watercress, whatever) instead of mayo. Pesto is fairly calorie-dense, but you need much less of it to pack a flavor punch. You could also try entirely swapping the pasta for zucchini or carrot noodles.

MFPMol

Try using low fat greek yogurt instead of mayo (or half mayo half yogurt) it gives it the same type of consistency with fewer calories plus extra protein.

dargytaylor

ahhhhhh...i love pesto!! good idea And my next kitchen gadget will surely be something to make noodles out of different veggies!

avskk

Can we link to our own recipes here? If so: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/view/54872007011885

That's my personal favorite summer pasta salad. Sometimes I switch the tomato-bacon dressing for about 3Tbsp pesto, sometimes I make it as-is. I like to throw some grilled chicken or steak on top to make it super-satiating. 331 calories/serve.

aprilgrl27

I make my pasta salad with italian dressing....cheese, green and red peppers, black olives..tomatoes...its yummy!

sijomial

Try not to confuse high calorie with unhealthy - two very different things.

sup3rb3ast

Cutting the pasta and upping the veggies is an awesome idea!

-Replace mayo with plain yogurt
-Try using a lower calorie dressing such as a vinaigrette or tzatziki
-Whole wheat pasta has less calories than regular pasta

All in all though, 500 calories is not terrible for a meal. Just have the salad as a meal for that amount and use a smaller amount if its going to be a side. If you really love it the way it is, just make room for it in your calorie goals.

dargytaylor

avskk wrote: »

Can we link to our own recipes here? If so: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/view/54872007011885

this brought me to my own recipe

ASKyle

Swapping out yogurt for mayo is a great suggestion. Try out zucchini or carrot noodles in place of some or all of the pasta and see if you like it!

Also whole wheat pasta is not always less calorie than regular pasta. "Healthier" does not equal "lower calorie"

sup3rb3ast

ASKyle wrote: »

Also whole wheat pasta is not always less calorie than regular pasta. "Healthier" does not equal "lower calorie"

Any brand I have ever bought has been about 50 or so less calories per serving. Which isn't much of a difference but if you eat a lot of pasta it can add up. I guess it depends on the brand, but generally I find whole wheat lower.

dargytaylor

great suggestions, thank you!!

avskk

dargytaylor wrote: »

avskk wrote: »

Can we link to our own recipes here? If so: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/view/54872007011885

this brought me to my own recipe

Thanks for letting me know! If anyone's interested, this is the recipe:

8 oz (227 g - about 1/2 box), Farfalle Bowtie Pasta- Corrected
6.00 Tbsp, Garden Tomato & Bacon Dressing
2.00 medium, Squash - Zucchini, includes skin, raw
225.00 g, Tomatoes - Red, ripe, raw, year round average
200.00 g, Broccoli - Raw
2.00 pepper, large (3-3/4" long, 3" dia), Peppers - Sweet, yellow, raw
475.00 g, Chicken - Breast, meat only, raw

Six servings, 331 calories each, 8g fat, 202mg sodium, 699mg potassium, 42g carbs (4g fiber), 26g protein. And of course, if you wanted it to be even lower in calories, you could swap the chicken for cucumbers and olives, cut the pasta and up the broccoli & tomatoes, etc.

CM9178

don't use mayo. I make pasta salad with a fat free italian dressing - the dressing goes a long way so not too much is needed and it makes a ton of servings.

kmsoucy457

I find the yogurt swap a little off-putting due to tanginess, though it is the best option if you want to keep it creamy. A secondary option which i think is better in taste: cottage cheese. If the lumps bother you, just run through a blender until smooth. The consistency will not be as dead-on as the yogurt, but flavor will be a lot closer.

Queenmunchy

Summer Macaroni Salad - 115 calories/serving

dargytaylor

kmsoucy457 wrote: »

I find the yogurt swap a little off-putting due to tanginess, though it is the best option if you want to keep it creamy. A secondary option which i think is better in taste: cottage cheese. If the lumps bother you, just run through a blender until smooth. The consistency will not be as dead-on as the yogurt, but flavor will be a lot closer.

very interesting!! i will have to try this

dargytaylor

Queenmunchy wrote: »

Summer Macaroni Salad - 115 calories/serving
quote]

This looks delicious!

AngryViking1970

Damn, this thread is reminding me of how much I love pasta salad!

Jessikin13

Skinnytaste.com has a bunch

jamie_reynolds

a little italian dressing and lots of red wine vinegar does the trick for me.