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The best cauliflower ranch summer salad recipe. Great for BBQs and potlucks. Spiral pasta, cauliflower, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers topped with ranch dressing.
Hello and welcome! Today I’m sharing a family favorite cauliflower ranch summer salad. Cauliflower is really popular right now — cauliflower “mashed potatoes,” cauliflower mac and cheese, cauliflower fried rice and so much more.
Try this delicious cauliflower side salad for your next BBQ or potluck. Our family typically makes this dish for larger gatherings — graduations, family reunions, wedding rehearsal dinners, etc. It is so tasty!
Cauliflower Ranch Summer Salad
The recipe I am sharing is enough for a small get-together or potluck. However, for larger gatherings feel free to make a double or triple batch. It’s a refreshing alternative to the Italian summer salad (pasta, Italian dressing, cheese, olives, etc.) and not to mention — it is loaded with veggies, yum!!
Plan for it to take about 25-30 minutes to make – chopping veggies, cooking and cooling the pasta and adding the ranch dressing. It serves about 12-14 people.
Grocery List
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 1/2 box of spiral pasta
- 1 cucumber
- 1 large tomato
- 1 can black olives, sliced
- Bottle Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing
Instructions & Recipe Tips
Start by cooking half of one box of spiral pasta salad — using the directions on the box. I normally buy a 1 pound box. Rinse with cold water — you don’t want the pasta to be warm when adding the ranch dressing!
Chop the cauliflower into bite-size pieces. Remember to wash your veggies! Dice the cucumber and tomato into chunks as seen below.
Slice the olives (if you didn’t buy the pre-sliced canned olives).
Add the pasta, cauliflower, cucumber, tomato, and olives to a large serving bowl.
Mix in the ranch dressing. I typically use about half of the bottle — just enough to coat the salad.
Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.
To mix things up, you can try using a Greek yogurt and dry ranch seasoning packet mixture for the dressing instead of the bottled ranch. Or try mixing sour cream and dry ranch seasoning.
Here is the teal bamboo bowl I use and love!
In the comments, let me know what you think! Have you made this version of a summer salad before?
Cauliflower Ranch Summer Salad
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Prep Time: 16 minutes -
Cook Time: 9 minutes
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Total Time: 25 minutes
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Yield: 12 -
Category: Salad -
Cuisine: American
Description
Refreshing cauliflower summer salad with pasta, cucumbers, tomatoes, olives and ranch.
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1/2 box spiral pasta
- 1 large tomato
- 1 cucumber
- 1 can black olives (sliced)
- Bottle Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing
Instructions
- Cook half of one box of spiral pasta (1 pound box) according to the directions on the box. Rinse with cold water.
- Chop the cauliflower into bite-size pieces.
- Dice the cucumber and tomato into chunks.
- Slice the black olives (if not already pre-sliced out of the can).
- Mix pasta, cauliflower, cucumber, tomato and olives in a large bowl.
- Add the ranch dressing – enough to coat the salad mixture.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Keywords: cauliflower, ranch, olives, cucumbers, pasta, tomatoes
Find it online: https://northernyum.com/blog/cauliflower-ranch-summer-salad-5/
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