Alcoeur Apron's Ranch Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 box (12 ounces) tri-color rotini pasta

• 1 cup chopped broccoli

• 1 cup chopped cucumbers, peeled and seeded

• 1 cup chopped tomatoes

• 1/2 shredded parmesan cheese

• 1 1/4 cups ranch dressing, more or less depending on preference

Homemade Ranch Dressing (optional)

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1/2 cup buttermilk

• 1/4 cup sour cream

• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

• 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed

• 1/2 teaspoon dried chives

• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Steps

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Remember to salt the pasta water to infuse the pasta with extra flavor (a healthy pinch is plenty). Drain the pasta and rinse under cold water so pasta can cool.

2. In a mixing bowl combine the cooled pasta, broccoli, cucumbers, tomatoes, and parmesan cheese. Stir. Add ranch and stir again to coat the noodles and veggies in ranch.

3. Serve right away or let it refrigerate for 1-2 hours before serving. Pasta salad tenders to dry out in the fridge so don't leave it in there too long before serving. If needed, add some additional dressing and give it a good stir to moisten it back up.

4. ** If you are making the homemade ranch dressing, I would suggest making it a day before the salad the flavors have plenty of time to meld, and for it to cool completely in the fridge. Combine all the ranch dressing ingredients into a small bowl and stir with a wire whisk. It makes just enough for the salad. For leftovers, I just use store-bought ranch dressing to moisten it back up.

Source: https://togetherasfamily.com/ranch-pasta-salad/