Summer is right around the corner, and thisSpinach Bacon Pasta Saladis the freshest side dish for all the picnics, barbecues, and pool parties your heart desires.

spinach bacon pasta salad in a big bowl with wooden spoons sitting on a blue and white towel.

Hey, summer, we are so ready for you! Pasta salads remind me of long, sunny days outside and dinner on the deck. They have everything you need; they’re almost like casserole’s cooler, fresher, more summery cousin!This one covers all its bases. Protein? Check. Vegetables? Check. Carbs? Check. Tons of flavor? Check!

Plus, it’s an absolutely beautiful dish. It’s great to bring to get-togethers with family and friends for a colorful side that everyone will love, and it couldn’t be any easier to toss together—literally. If you want tomake it ahead of an event, store the cooked pasta, mixed dressing, and veggies separately and throw ’em in a bowl with a quick toss before serving.

pasta salad with different colored vegetables in a big bowl with wooden spoons sitting on a blue and white towel.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

An easy make-ahead dish to take to any gathering, and it’s aneasy dish to transportwith a tight-fitting lid. Super easy and no mess!
Since this recipe has ameal-in-onevariety of pasta, bacon, and vegetables, it also makes a great lunch for home, work, or even at the park.
This pasta salad is soquick to pull together—basically the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta, and you can have this dish prepared!

Recipe Ingredients

Pasta –I used fun cavatappi here, but you can use any pasta cooked according to the package directions.
Bacon
Olive oil
Red wine vinegar
Mayonnaise
Garlic –fresh garlic tastes best, but use garlic powder in a pinch!
Tomatoes –fresh tomatoes make this a go-to summer salad
Onion –any color or type of onion will work—red or yellow, sweet onion, or even green onions
Spinach –this must be fresh spinach but can be either baby spinach or regular spinach that’s cut up.

See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Spinach Bacon Pasta Salad

Cook the pasta, drain, and rinse.
Cook the baconin another pan while the pasta cooks.
While the pasta and bacon are cooking,make the dressing.
Toss all ingredients togetherin a large bowl. Serve warm or chill before serving.

Recipe FAQs

How long does Spinach Bacon Pasta Salad last?

Once it’s constructed, you’ll want to eat this pasta salad within 24 hours to avoid the spinach wilting or tomatoes making everything soggy. If the cooked pasta, dressing, and chopped vegetables are separately in the fridge, it will keep for 3 to 4 days.

Do you rinse pasta after cooking it for a cold pasta salad?

Yep! In a lot of hot pastas, you never rinse the noodles to save the good starchy film on the pasta, which helps pasta sauce cling to it. But for cold pasta salad, you have to rinse the noodles to stop them from cooking further and to keep the pasta loose, not sticky and clumpy.

Can you heat up cold pasta salad?

You probably could… but I wouldn’t. The dressing is basically a salad dressing, and it doesn’t really translate to warm foods. Plus, the veggies would steam and wilt, taking away from the nice, fresh crunch they add to cold pasta salad.

If you’re feeding a crowd, double or even triple this recipe!
This salad is theperfect summer lunch or dinner side dishwhen spinach and tomatoes are fresh from the garden.
Two other pasta dishes my family loves in the summer arezucchini pastaandpesto pasta salad, both of which have ingredients you can pull straight from the garden.
Serve this easy salad with quickgrilled chicken skewersorgrilled salmonfor a fast summer meal.

What goes with pasta salad?

If you’re looking for main dishes to go well with Spinach Bacon Pasta Salad, there are tons of options, includingburgers, grilled chicken or ribs (or your favorite grilled meat), hot dogs, lobster rolls, and steak skewers.