Turkey Tuesdays: Mediterranean Turkey Pasta Salad

I can't believe that today is the last Tuesday in September!! Is it just me, or did that go by in the blink of an eye?

I'm wondering if any of you have been joining me in celebrating "turkey" this month?  If you haven't it's not too late to get on the bandwagon, because this recipe is absolutely delicious.  If you have never had greens and pasta together, you are missing out!




The original recipe can be found on Allrecipes.  I made a few changes according to what I had on hand in my fridge.

• I didn't have any feta, so I replaced it with mozzarella
• I added a half of a sliced orange bell pepper
• I used a 1/3 cup bottled Greek Dressing (Matsos Sweet Greek Dressing and Marinade with Olive Oil) instead of making the dressing called for in the recipe
• I omitted the parsley (didn't have any) 
• I had the deli cut me off a chunk (about a 1/2# worth) of turkey, and then cut it up smaller when I got home (chicken would be a suitable substitute for turkey as well)

This salad is so good.  I took leftovers to work the next day for lunch, and even when the greens got wilted by the dressing, it was still delicious.  If you aren't a fan of spring lettuce mix, you can substitute arugula or spinach.

 Mediterranean Turkey Pasta Salad

Printable Recipe

Servings - 8   Serving Size - 1/8th of recipe   Points Plus per Serving - 9 Points+

Calories -  355.2,   Total Fat - 11.6g,   Carb. - 47.1g,   Protein - 16.4g,   Fiber - 1.5g

Ingredients:

8 oz. chunk of Butterball®  Golden Oven Roasted Deli Turkey Breast, cubed

8 oz. penne pasta, cooked to al dente, according to package directions, and cooled

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced in half

24 grape tomatoes, cut in half

1 small orange bell pepper, thinly sliced

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion

4 oz. cubed, part-skim mozzarella cheese

3 cups Spring Mix Lettuces

1/3 cup Matsos Sweet Greek Dressing & Marinade

Directions:

1. In large bowl, combine all the ingredients.  Toss to coat.  Serve immediately.

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These pictures DO NOT do this salad justice.  With the end of the month approaching, and Fall arriving, good daylight is getting less and less available. We were hungry the night I made this salad and I was too lazy to drag out the light box.  I think I need to give it a spot and just leave it up so it's ready for such occasions.  My little point and shoot just does not do well with low lighting.

I used my own dressing because if you make the one in the original recipe...1.  It's way too much dressing for the salad (IMHO) and 2. It turns this "salad" into a calorie bomb!  Almost 800 calories a serving....WHA????????  I know the dressing I used is a local-to-me product, so if you want to replace it with another dressing, or even make your own (just not the one in the original recipe...please a cup and a half of oil for a dressing? )  just know that the nutritional information MAY change. 

Butterball has teamed up with Allrecipes for "Turkey Tuesdays" and several allstars (including myself) have been asked to bring you delicious turkey recipes each Tuesday in the month of September. (Disclaimer:  I was provided with product for this recipe via Allrecipes as part of the Allstars program.  All opinions expressed in this post are mine.)