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February 21, 2025

Pasta Salad with Ham, Peas & Mint

Ham, Pea, Mint, and Parmesan pasta salad healthy family dinner
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Pasta Salad with Ham, Peas & Mint

Ham, Pea, Mint, and Parmesan pasta salad healthy family dinner
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This recipe idea is another pasta salad, ideal for kids' parties and family picnics. Pasta salad is an exciting and healthy change from pizza — kids love pasta too! You can make your pasta salad with the best ingredients and the perfect pasta from Italy. 

I also made this version for my daughter's birthday party. The night before, I cooked the pasta, chopped the ham, and warmed the peas. The next morning, I tossed everything together with olive oil, Parmesan, mint, salt, and pepper. It was ready in minutes and devoured in no time. The parents loved it too! 

Ingredients

Bow tie pasta — or other pasta of your choice
Ham — sliced ham or diced ham steak
Frozen peas
Fresh mint
Olive oil
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Cook the pasta in salted water, reducing the cooking time on the package by 1 1/2 to 2 minutes to cook the pasta al dente. Drain and rinse thoroughly with cold water. (Rinsing the pasta for a cold pasta salad will prevent it from clumping together.)
 
Dice the ham.
 
Boil the peas to warm, then drain.

Put the pasta in a bowl, and then the ham and peas.  

Tear the mint and add it to the pasta.

Drizzle with olive oil — just enough to coat it lightly. 

Add the Parmesan, salt & pepper and toss to combine. 

Store in the fridge or let it sit at room temperature if serving soon. 

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I often cook "au pif," as we say in France, which means cooking without an exact recipe and by "feel" using your intuition.  You’ll find guidelines in many recipes versus exact quantities.  Write to me here if you have any questions about the recipes.

Copyright 2019-2025, Return to the Table by Caterina De Falco, All Rights Reserved

Ham, Pea, Mint, and Parmesan pasta salad healthy family dinner

You can put anything you like in your pasta salads. 

You may also like these pasta salad ideas for school lunches, picnics, and parties. 

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Cold pasta salad, packed for school lunch
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Cold pasta salad, packed for a picnic at the beach

You might also enjoy reading about cooking pasta al dente.

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