Hot Cool Pasta Salad With Green Chile Vinaigrette

Mommy Diva's Note:

Another great dish - pasta, dressing and chips all from the New Mexican CHILE site. Don't let the number of steps throw you, it is faster than it looks!!! And worth it!

• Total Time: 30 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

PASTA SALAD

• 4 cups cooked pasta
• 1 large very ripe tomato , chopped
• 1 large avocado , chopped
• 2 large green chilies , roasted, peeled & chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• ½ cup diced sharp cheddar cheese
• ¼ cup red onion , finely chopped

VINAIGRETTE

• 1 large garlic clove
• 2 large green chilies , roasted, peeled, & chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• black pepper
• 1 pinch sugar

CHILE LIME CHIPS

• 4 flour tortillas
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons red chili powder

Garnish

• salad greens , if desired to line plates (optional)

Directions:

1. Place the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Prepare the Green Chile Vinaigrette and pour over the salad. Fold gently until dressing is well distributed. Line plates with assorted greens and place pasta salad on top.
2. **For Vinaigrette:.
3. Leave the skin on the garlic clove. Roast in a dry hot skillet, turning several times until softened and brown in spots, about 10 minutes. Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth and emulsified. Leftovers will keep 4-5 days in refrigerator.
4. ***For Chile Lime Chips:.
5. Heat oven to 400 deg. Combine salt & chile powder, mix well. Brush one side of each tortilla with lime juice and sprinkle with salt mixture. Cut into 6 or 8 triangles and place chile side up in a single layer on baking sheets. Bake for 7-8 minute or until browned. Cool and store in a ziploc bag until ready to serve with salads, dips, or sandwiches.

Reviews

[Maito]

We really liked this. For personal preferences we left out the cheese and onion, used only a tablespoon of the oil and a sprinkle of salt. I also added half a minced jalapeno, since I had it. The pasta salad went well with the greens. In my oven, 7 minutes was too little, and at 9 minutes they were starting to burn, so watch the chips carefully! I made a full salad recipe and half of a chip recipe for 2 for a meal. Yummy!

[loveleesmile]

I have made this several times. It is really, really good! My mother is the greatest and sent me some fresh green chile. Thank you for posting. Somehow I lost this recipe. I am so glad I was perusing the site looking for a new way to use my chile… and stumbled across this. No need for a new way, I will make this again. Happy New Year!!

[anme]

I made this for my mother to have for lunch today and she really enjoyed it. The chips were soooo good! The lime really kicks the chips up a few notches. I didnt have any avocado, so I left that out. I had some leaft over roasted garlic so I just used that to make this an even simpler meal to prepare. Great recipe!