Summer in Texas

Summer in Texas means heat.  And I don't mean a little bit hot, I mean heat that you can barely stand to be in for longer than about 5 minutes.  Where we live, about an hour north of  the Gulf Coast, it's hot, it's humid, and it's miserable to do anything outside between about noon and 7 PM.  My husband, who owns a concrete placement company, is outside all day.  So, when he comes home from a day of working outside during the hot Texas summer, he doesn't want a hot meal.  He wants something cool and refreshing.  This pasta salad is just that and is great as a side or as a meal by itself.  Plus, my kids love it!

Stay tuned this week for more summer salad ideas.

BLT Pasta Salad:

2 1/2 cups of whole grain rotini pasta, cooked

1 cucumber chopped

1/4 cup of chopped sweet onion or purple onion (we left this out of the portion for the kids)

1 cup of grape tomatoes

3/4 cup of Miracle Whip

2 Tablespoons of Milk

8-10 slices of bacon cooked very crisp and crumbled

1 avocado chopped and 1/2 lemon squeezed over i

Salt and Pepper to taste

Lettuce to serve it on

Boil pasta and drain.  Chop Cucumber and onion.  Make dressing by thinning the Miracle Whip with the milk. Chop Avocado and squeeze lemon over it.  Put all ingredients in a bowl and toss.  Serve over a bed of your favorite lettuce.  I like to buy shredded iceberg lettuce.