Arugula Pasta Caesar Salad (Printable Version)

Peppery arugula and tender pasta tossed in creamy Caesar dressing with croutons and shaved Parmesan.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 9 oz short pasta (rotini, penne, or fusilli)
02 - Salt for pasta water

→ Salad

03 - 4 cups fresh arugula, washed and dried
04 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
05 - 1/2 cup shaved Parmesan cheese
06 - 1 cup homemade or store-bought croutons

→ Caesar Dressing

07 - 1/2 cup mayonnaise
08 - 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
09 - 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
10 - 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
11 - 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
12 - 1 garlic clove, minced
13 - 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
14 - Salt and black pepper, to taste

# Directions:

01 - Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a rolling boil. Add the short pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain through a colander and rinse briefly under cold running water to halt cooking and cool the pasta completely.
02 - While the pasta cooks, combine mayonnaise, grated Parmesan, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, and olive oil in a mixing bowl. Whisk vigorously until smooth and emulsified. Season with salt and black pepper to taste, adjusting as needed.
03 - In a large serving bowl, combine the cooled pasta, arugula, halved cherry tomatoes, and croutons. Toss gently to distribute the ingredients evenly.
04 - Drizzle the Caesar dressing over the salad and toss gently until every component is evenly coated. Top with shaved Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

# Top Tips:

01 -
  • It bridges the gap between a proper meal and a fresh salad, which means nobody leaves the table hungry.
  • The homemade Caesar dressing comes together in about two minutes and tastes impossibly better than anything from a bottle.
02 -
  • Rinsing the pasta under cold water is not a sin here, because you actually want to stop the cooking and wash away excess starch so the dressing clings rather than slides off.
  • If you add anchovy paste to the dressing, start with half a teaspoon, taste, and build up, because a little goes a shockingly long way.
03 -
  • Make the dressing up to three days ahead and store it in the fridge, because the flavors deepen and improve overnight.
  • Toast stale bread cubes in a hot oven with olive oil and a pinch of garlic salt for croutons that taste so good people will eat them off the baking sheet.

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