I used whole wheat bow tie pasta for this recipe but you can use any shape pasta you like. Also, the dressing is dairy free. I was able to use the new Silk Plain Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternative 24 oz. This variety is simply the best. You can use it for anything really, parfait, smoothies, salad dressings…I think you will love it. This new yogurt is

• 11 grams of plant-powered protein
• Delicious taste and creamy texture
• Free of cholesterol, dairy, lactose, gluten, carrageenan or casein
• Non-GMO Project Verified
• No high-fructose corn syrup

If you would like to make this recipe gluten free you can also use gluten free pasta. This recipe would work perfectly with it. Any type of pasta goes!

The salad dressing I came up with was really delicious. I happen to love anything with cilantro and avocados so I thought mixing them both together for the salad dressing would work well. I am thinking of making another yogurt dressing using pesto. I love pesto too so will see how that one turns out.

You can visit Silk’s website and get a coupon to try the yogurt for yourself. I am sure you are not going to be disappointed.

Also, you can take the Taste the Goodness challenge at Silk and let them know what you think about their new dairy free yogurts!

While this pasta salad with yogurt cilantro avocado dressing is very versatile, as you can add any veggies of your choice, I just pretty much used what I had on hand. Cucumbers, tomatoes, corn and a few fresh herbs. If you don’t like certain veggies you can tailor it to your liking so swap any ingredients you see fit.

I know spring is just around the corner and this recipe is great for it. The colorful veggies are very appetizing and the fact that you can eat it cold or at room temperature makes it rather convenient. You can bring this recipe to any gathering or pack it for your kids lunch box.

Well, I hope you get to make this easy pasta salad with yogurt cilantro avocado dressing. If you like avocados you are going to love this dressing. It is nothing but delicious.

Enjoy!

pasta salad with yogurt cilantro avocado dressing

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 8 servings

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb whole wheat bow tie pasta
• 8 oz cherry tomatoes, sliced
• 1 large cucumber, pealed and chopped into small pieces
• 8 oz frozen corn kernels, thawed out
• 1 oz Fresh mint, chopped

Dressing 

• 1 cup Silk Plain Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternative 24 oz
• 3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar, or any other vinegar
• 1 avocado, pealed
• 1 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/4 tsp celtic salt
• 1/4 tsp black ground pepper.

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Cool the pasta for 15 minutes.

To make the dressing, to your blender, add the dressing ingredients and pulse until you obtain a homogenous mixture. Set aside.

In a large bowl add the cucumbers, corn, and tomatoes. Add the pasta and dressing and toss to combine. Add some more seasoning if desire.

Serve.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

The post pasta salad with yogurt cilantro avocado dressing appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.

Last week, on my last post, I mentioned that I was in Spain…yes, that’s right, I am in Spain. Is like I am in a dream, and sort of a surreal one because I haven’t visited Spain for the past two years and that for me is just a very long time!

I must confess that I am beyond the moon, excited and having the time of my life…and I think so are my kids :-) For those that don’t know me, Spain is where I was born, grew up and lived for the first 18 years of my life. England and the USA followed.

The last time I was in Spain, which was in 2011, was a bit of an ordeal. My youngest was a year old at the time, which required breast-feeding, strollers, diapers, bottles and everything and anything of that nature. Now, since she is already three, we are past that, and I couldn’t be more excited. It makes traveling a hell of a lot easier! For those that are on that boat know exactly what I mean. The simplest outing can turned to the biggest production.

This time around, we are visiting  family and friends, but we are also doing some tourism. We are enjoying eating good local food, and visiting some historic towns all around. Since our kids are now older, we are able to enjoy this kind of trips much more.

For instance, last week, I had the chance to spend the day with my only sister. We were able to go to this beautiful place in Asturias, North Spain, and spend 7 hours just hiking. It was breath-taking, amazing and extremely inspirational. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Raw nature to its finest.

The cliffs were scary at times, however, I forgot about them. The place was so beautiful that I kept getting distracted by the overall beauty of the place. The cliffs didn’t matter after a while.

I have never hiked that long in my entire life and that night my legs were pretty much none responsive. I work out on a regular basis but because this trail was pretty complex with different terrain, hills and such, I used muscles in my legs that I though I never had, a good feeling!

I will keep posting some pictures of the different trips we will be taking throughout the summer here in Spain. I will also try to share some more Spanish authentic dishes but for now I leave you with this gazpacho, a chilled based vegetable drink/soup that is super healthy, simple and very reminiscence of Spain.

I hope everyone is having a great summer, so far we are.

Until my next post,

stay safe and enjoy!

The Cares hiking route is a must. If you ever visit Spain and you are into hiking I strongly suggest you come. Just be careful with the falling rocks, besides that, you will love this place.

This was right before arriving to the higher altitude areas. The scenery is just breath-taking. Horses, cows, sheep, are all around. Fisher man, people kayaking and bikers also predominate the area. There are many outdoors activities to do in the area as well as places to explore.

This time around I used an immersion blender to make the gazpacho but you can use your regular kitchen counter blender if you like. Either method is just fine.

Make sure you serve the gazpacho chilled. When you make it you can adjust the gazpacho according to taste. You can add more garlic, vinegar, olive oil. I always use quadruple the amount of garlic :-)

Spanish gazpacho

Miryam's original recipe

Yield: 6 servings

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs very ripe tomatoes
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves
• Pinch of Celtic salt

Directions:

In your blender place all of the ingredients and blend until smooth. I never peeled the tomatoes but some people do. The fiber and certain nutrients are included in the peel. If you blend the gazpacho well the tomato skin shouldn't be a problem.

Note that you can also use an immersion blender to make the gazpacho if you like.

Serve gazpacho chilled and keep left over covered in the refrigerator.

Nutrition facts calculated based on the recipe giving 6 servings.

The post Spanish gazpacho appeared first on Eat Good 4 Life.