Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

[Jherrith]

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad


Ingredients:


4-6 slices bacon
1 medium carrot, grated
2 cups uncooked medium shell pasta
2/3 cup real mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
1 packet (about 3 tablespoons) dry ranch dressing mix
2 tablespoons buttermilk or milk
1/2 cup sweet peas, frozen or canned (such as Le Sueur), thawed and/or well drained


Instructions:


Cook the bacon until crisp; remove to drain on a paper towel, chop and set aside. Put grated carrot into a microwave safe bowl, lightly sprinkle with water, cover and cook on high for 2 minutes; set aside to cool. May also saute in a skillet, or boil in a saucepan if you don't have a microwave. Let cool, and wrap the cooked carrots in several layers of paper towels and squeeze out any residual liquid. Set aside.


Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain. Transfer to storage container. Toss with mayonnaise while pasta is still warm, until well blended. Add the chopped bacon, the cooked and cooled carrots, onion powder and ranch dressing mix; stir. Add a splash of buttermilk or milk, and stir in until creamy adding additional milk as needed for desired consistency. Gently fold in the peas, cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving. Allow to rest at room temperature before serving and refresh with a spoon of pickle juice and/or additional mayonnaise if needed.


Cook's Notes: Makes about 4 cups; increase as needed. Canned Le Sueur peas are perfect for this, but very tender, so add them after you've mixed everything else well, then gently toss to avoid mashing them. As with most pasta salads, there are lots of add-ins you can use - celery, black olives, red onion, green or red bell pepper, a seeded and chopped tomato, just to name a few, and of course, all kinds of shredded cheeses - there really are endless possibilities. If you do want to add in tomato, clean, seed and chop it and add it right before serving to avoid making the pasta watery.