One of my number one rules in the kitchen is: always more herbs. This herb and arugula pasta salad is FULL of cilantro, basil, mint. parsley…. and I’m obsessed. Just enough pasta to give you that chewy carb, but when it comes together, if it has more green than pasta — you did it right!
The herbs are everything, then the fresh lemon juice and the sweet, subtle, clean flavor of the white balsamic vinegar is all you need. Well, and obviously garlic.
How to Make Herb and Arugula Pasta Salad
You’ll need:
- Small lemon, juiced, 2-3 Tbsp (40 g)
- Olive oil (15 g)
- White balsamic vinegar, lemon infused if you have it! (15 g)
- Garlic, minced (or frozen cubes)
- Ground cumin
- Kosher salt
- Pasta, cooked according to package directions (8 oz uncooked weight)*
- Arugula, roughly chopped (140 g)
- Cilantro, chopped (40 g)
- Mint, chopped (20 g)
- Basil, chopped (20 g)
- Parsley, chopped (10 g)
- Shaved parmesan reggiano (28 g)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- *Optional toasted pine nuts
In a large bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, cumin, and salt. After that is nice and mixed, add the cooked and cooled pasta, chopped arugula, and all of your chopped herbs. Give everything a good toss! As I said before, if it’s more green than pasta, you did it right! But, feel free to add more pasta if you’re not as concerned about the macros, or if you don’t like quite so much green. Ha.
Top with shaved parmesan and additional salt and pepper to taste. Give it another toss and enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
If you’ve got room for more fats, some extra olive oil and toasted pine nuts are always delicious with this combo! You can also add some grilled chicken or steak for protein to make this tasty pasta salad a meal.
See notes below if you’d rather use the Barilla protein pasta, or a Banza chickpea pasta! I’ve learned that the macros work out pretty close in the end, so we usually just use regular pasta. But feel free to use your favorite!
Similar Recipes:
Looking for other quick salads to whip up for lunch? Try a few of my other favorites,
Italian Pasta Salad – Lillie Eats and Tells
Summer Chopped Salad with Light Champagne Basil Vinaigrette – Lillie Eats and Tells
Farro, Arugula Salad with Lemon and Herbs – Lillie Eats and Tells
Summer Salad with Arugula, Basil, Pasta and Crispy Chicken – Lillie Eats and Tells
You can find more real food that fits your macros in my cookbook, Lille Eats and Tells Macro Friendly Cookbook! And be sure to follow along on Instagram for more tips on integrating macro-friendly eating for you and your family.
Herb and Arugula Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 small lemon juiced, 2-3 Tbsp (40 g)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil 15 g
- 1 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar lemon infused if you have it! (15 g)
- 1 clove garlic minced (or frozen cubes)
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 8 oz pasta cooked according to package directions (8 oz uncooked weight)*
- 4 cups arugula roughly chopped (140 g)
- 1 cup cilantro chopped (40 g)
- ½ cup mint chopped (20 g)
- ½ cup basil chopped (20 g)
- ½ cup parsley chopped (10 g)
- ¼ cup shaved parmesan reggiano 28 g
- Additional salt and pepper to taste
- *Optional toasted pine nuts
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, cumin, and salt. Add cooked and cooled pasta, chopped arugula, and all of your chopped herbs. Toss well. If it’s more green than pasta, you did it right! Feel free to add more pasta if you’re not as concerned about the macros.
- Top with shaved parmesan, and additional salt and pepper to taste. Toss lightly and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Tag @LillieEatsAndTells on Instagram with #LillieEatsandTells! We’d love to see your creations!
My new FAVORITE!! I’m not a pasta salad person, but this is magical. The flavors are amazing and everything I could want. I used banza pasta which my husband doesn’t love but he couldn’t even tell with this since the other flavors were so awesome! Thank you Lillie 🙂