Summer Spaghetti

Have an upcoming summer gathering?  This dish is requested so often, I am sure I have made it a million times!  It it super easy and the idea came from a salad we ate all summer long as kids, loved it, and when we could no longer find it, I made my own...that tells you how long it's been around!

I love it because it is fresh and can be customized in so many different ways.  For ours, it's my husband who is picky, not my kids when it comes to veggies.  Mine would be loaded with olives for one {grin} but they do to him what squash does to me, so I leave 'em out.  This is a cold dish.

Excuse my "measurements", I am specific when I bake, but not so much when I cook!

You'll need...

* a box of spaghetti

use about 3/4, I haven't tried it yet, but you could experiment with whole-wheat pasta or 

pasta plus with protein

* 2 cans diced tomatoes 

I usually use 1 garlic/olive oil and 1 plain

* Italian dressing, bottle or make your own

my all-time favorite is Newman's Own Light Italian, 

I couldn't find it for this post, but it has barely a hint of lemon, so good!

*chopped veggies (cucumber, green onions, red pepper)

also love radishes, olives, yellow and orange peppers, so many options

*seasoning to taste

here I used garlic salt, mrs. dash salt-free garlic and herb {trying to cancel out the salt?}, 

and a bit of old bay seasoning to add a little kick

I also love a seasoning called SPIKE that works great here too

*parmesan cheese

chop the veggies, add half the bottle of dressing, 2 cans of tomatoes and seasoning
mix well in a bowl large enough to add the spaghetti into

boil the pasta, nothing ruins a salad like soggy pasta so keep it al dente

rinse in cold water

a little trick I learned to keep pasta from sticking, add a teeny-tiny bit of oil to the water

add spaghetti to tomato mixture, season as desired and add more dressing if you'd like
refrigerate for a couple hours

I promise you'll have people asking for this recipe, it is so yummy and healthy and easy to throw together!

No lie, I cut it up super small for my little guys and they all gobble it right up, from dad all the way down to number 5 {now that makes a mom feel good!}