Broccoli, Bacon and Red Grape Pasta Salad Recipe

I've had some major salad cravings lately. Potato salad, lettuce salad, pasta salad... you name it! 

This salad definitely helped curb some of those cravings! I'm a lover of all things sweet and salty and this recipe has that perfect combo.

Chunks of crispy broccoli, sweet grapes, salty bacon and toasty pecans all mixed with some pasta and a sweet, tangy sauce. Heaven, I tell ya. I seriously ate half of it for dinner one evening, and the rest for lunch the next day. I still wanted more. Be smarter than me, make a double batch. You won't regret it!

 

Tomorrow will be 3 whole months in our new Habitat house!! We are loving every minute of home ownership so far, except for shoveling the 20,000 feet of snow we got this winter! Luckily I have some awesome neighbors. The older gentleman 2 houses down always blows my snow for me. I have a corner lot with 2 LONG sidewalks, so that is much appreciated! There's also an older lady who lives a couple more houses down and she brought my daughter and I some homemade butterscotch chip cookies today. Bless their hearts! Great home and great neighbors. Makes me smile! :)

Here's her lovely cookies!

Broccoli, Bacon and Red Grape Pasta Salad
4-5 servings

What you need:
1/2 pound bowtie pasta
1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup mayo
2-3 tablespoons sugar (I used 3, but start with 2 and add more as needed)
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cups fresh broccoli, cut into small florets
4 strips crispy bacon, chopped
1/4 cup red onion, finely diced
1 cup seedless red grapes, halved
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
black pepper and salt if needed

Directions:
Cook pasta to al dente. Rinse with cold water and drain.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Toast the pecans on a baking sheet for 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

In large bowl, whisk together the mayo, sugar, and red wine vinegar until smooth. Add pasta, pecans, broccoli, bacon, onion, grapes and parsley. Stir until combined. Add pepper and salt, as needed. Refrigerate until serving. 

Note: If making this salad ahead of time, you may need to mix another batch of sauce and stir in when serving. Otherwise, it may be dry from the noodles absorbing the sauce. 

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On the blog... one year ago: Loaded Chicken & Bacon Tator Tots

Two years ago: Buttery Garlic Bread

This recipe is featured at: The Country Cook

This recipe is shared at these blogs: Love Bakes Good Cakes, The Best Blog Recipes, A Dash of Sanity, The Better Baker, This Gal Cooks, Flour Me with Love, Memories by the Mile, Inside BruCrew Life, Kathe with an E, Feeding Big, Simple Living and Eating,