A pasta salad made with rotini pasta, Colby Jack cheese, ham, grape tomatoes and other veggies, tossed in a restaurant-style buttermilk Ranch and Italian dressing.
Most of y'all know I don't do videos. I know, I know.
I just didn't grow up in this video central generation and even though my grandchildren think I should be participating, it's just awkward and not a natural fit for me! Plus, from what I gather you have to be in pajamas or full makeup, hair and have your nails professionally done and well... that ain't me anymore!
Eh, maybe one day??
Plus, I gotta be honest here. I also see how the social media public treats content creators and that energy is not something I want in my life. As far as social media goes, I'm just sharing recipes, so I'll keep plugging away with this website format while y'all enjoy it and as long as I'm capable.
When I just need a break from everything, I do enjoy watching and getting recipe inspiration from other content creators though, especially on TikTok. I'll have to gather up a list of my favorites to share with y'all in a post, but in the meantime, I wanted to share one of them for this recipe.
This pasta salad recipe came from @brandycooks, a multichannel Gen X lifestyle and cooking influencer, and she's one of my favorites. Not only is she a beautiful woman, but she also has a beautiful soul and a tender heart that shines through in her videos. I really enjoy her content on her cooking page as well as the separate fashion and beauty page that she also runs. Go check her out if you're on the Tikity Tok or other social media.
Now I love a good pasta salad, and I love how much variety you can bring into one, and Brandy recently shared this one that she named Okie Pasta Salad. I loved the dressing she made as well as the combination of the pasta type and veggies she included so I gave it a try and loved it!
Here's what you'll need to make my version of Brandy's Okie Pasta Salad:
- 3 cups uncooked rotini pasta
- 3/4 cup real mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup buttermilk or whole milk
- 1/2 cup zesty Italian dressing
- 1 (0.4 ounce) packet Ranch dressing mix (Restaurant Style recommended)
- 2 teaspoons freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 cup halved grape tomatoes
- 1 green onion, sliced
- 1/2 cup bite-sized cubed Colby Jack cheese
- 1 cup bite-sized cubed ham
- 2 unpeeled mini cucumbers, cubed
- 1/2 cup halved pitted black olives
- 1/3 cup chopped red onion
Boil pasta according to package directions; drain, rinse and set aside to cool. I totally forgot to photograph that part apparently, but I did use my microwave Fasta Pasta (#ad), of course!
Now, first things first. While I'm sure that any commercial Ranch dressing or dressing mix will work, Brandy insisted that we should use this Hidden Valley Ranch Restaurant-Style version (#ad). She actually had this made up in the refrigerator and poured about half of it in her pasta salad, and this is where I deviated from her recipe a bit. The packet calls for 1 cup mayo and 1 cup buttermilk so I made some adjustments to account for using the full packet in the pasta salad along with the other Italian dressing we're using.
She's right though. This version really is, in my opinion, the best of the Ranch mix selections available now and will be on regular rotation at my house too!
Note: As an Amazon.com Services LLC Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases linked in my posts and marked as #ad or #affiliate links.
Also, given all the recent recall headlines lately, here's my friendly reminder that you need more than tap water to wash your fruits and veggies these days y'all. There is an abundance in the products available (#ad) now, but I've been using this Clean Boss brand for several years now.
Grab you a lidded storage bowl or a large enough bowl to mix the pasta salad in and start with adding the dressing ingredients in the bottom. We're using real mayonnaise, buttermilk (or you could sub in whole milk), zesty Italian dressing and one packet of restaurant-style Ranch dressing mix.
Whisk that up until it's smooth. I'm using my favorite whisk (#ad) to do that! What's unique about this whisk is that it's a "push down" style of whisk, requiring no straining wrist movement, so if you have issues with dexterity or arthritis, find you one of these! It's a great kitchen tool.
Add some freshly cracked black pepper. I think Brandy used a lot more than me if I recall correctly, but I'm being a bit more modest. Next time I make this I do think I'll toss in a little Cajun or Creole seasoning too.
Time to prep and gather up the pasta salad components!
I followed Brandy's lead on the ham, Colby Jack cheese, green onion, cucumber and sliced grape tomatoes and everything should be pretty uniform in size and cubed, except for the tomatoes. In addition to those, I had a bit of black olives and purple onion I needed to use up so I included those as well.
I keep canned ham (#ad) like Dak or Goya in my emergency supplies, and I had one of those left that needed to be used up so that's what I'm using here. These are usually processed hams, much like Spam, and highly salty, but when you're hungry following a disaster like a hurricane, you're happy to have it. Funny though. I can't even think about canned hams without thinking about Christmas with the Kranks! IYKYK.
Anyway... add everything to the bowl on top of the dressing and pasta.
Give it a gentle toss, cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours so the flavors can get acquainted!
Y'all, this was really just a perfect blend of flavors and that restaurant-style Ranch mixed with zesty Italian dressing wrapped it up beautifully. Hope you give it a try.
For more of my favorite pasta salads, check out this collection on my Pinterest page!
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