Time to Celebrate Summer Cookout Season With This No-Oil, Packed-With-Veggies, Macaroni Salad Recipe!
Time to Celebrate Summer Cookout Season With This No-Oil, Packed-With-Veggies, Macaroni Salad Recipe!When you’re eating nutritarian, family gatherings can be (now, how can I put this diplomatically) challenging.
Well, consider yourself officially covered in the what-in-the-world-am-I-going-to-bring department!
Everyone loves macaroni salad–it’s an absolute picnic, cookout and Fourth of July staple that no one will refuse!
What your friends and family won’t realize is the nutrient bounty packed in this salad…
Nutrifying Macaroni Salad
Yeah, there’s a whole lot of plants in here!
- red onion
- red bell pepper
- carrots
- yellow bell pepper
- celery
- diced jalapeno (if you like it hot)
There are 5 cups of chopped raw veggies packed into this pasta salad recipe! Plus another 1/2 cup of raw sunflower seeds.
That’s a bonafide serving of phytonutrients that you usually won’t find in a SAD (Standard American Diet) macaroni salad recipe. Add to that a delicious oil-free, low-sodium, vegan mayo and we are making serious headway in the nutrification process!
But, what really sets this salad apart is the pasta.
Organic green lentil pasta made from one ingredient: organic green lentil flour. Yeah, that’s pretty much finely ground beans.
I use the Tolerant Organic Green Lentil Elbow Macaroni noodles that I buy at Whole Foods.
Is it pricey? Yes, at $6.99 per box, it most certainly is.
But for a once-in-a-while treat, why not? For other nutritarian pasta options read this article!
Make it Ahead–It Tastes Even Better the Next Day!
I have a prepping habit addiction.
The easier a recipe is to make and the longer it stores in the fridge only increases it’s value in my eyes!
That’s why this recipe is such a gem! You can chop all your veggies up to two nights before you serve this salad! I like to make the salad the night before I’m serving it so all the flavors can meld together.
As long as you make sure to cook your pasta al dente, the leftovers will last for up to 5 days in the fridge and still taste amazing (I had to eat quite a few batches of this recipe and you’ll soon see why)!
Introducing My Very First YouTube Recipe Video Ever:
It was so much fun figuring out how to shoot a recipe video! And, yes, there was a whole lot of figuring going on for me.
Now that I’ve gotten my first two videos done (I’ll be sharing the next one when I get back from vacay!), I’m starting to refine my approach and I have an amazing line up of video content I can’t wait to share with you!
Please take a moment to subscribe to my YouTube channel here! After I get my first 100 subscribers I can get a custom channel name–right now it’s a very unappealing and forgettable “UCOLWRfK4jTqPFM4Cqp4PrZg”, lol.
My Macaroni Salad Evolution
My Macaroni Salad EvolutionThis recipe is proof that nutrifying your favorite meals works!
See, I made a vegan version of recipe a few years ago, you can see it in the archives here. The only problem was it was made with vegan mayo (which is straight-up machine-whipped oil), a combination of white and wheat macaroni noodles, and plenty of salt.
Could I eat the vegan version and still conform to Dr. Fuhrman’s recommendations? Sure, if I were following is 90/10 rule I could have a small portion of the vegan macaroni salad and it would fall under that 100-calories of low-nutrient foods.
But I don’t like little portions.
I’d rather stack my plate up with this nutritarian version and not skip a beat!
See, the whole no-calorie-counting thing is a major turn-on for me–I always say portion control is for the birds!
Nutritarian Macaroni Salad Recipe
Nutrify this favorite summer BBQ cookout classic with lots of raw veggies, lentil bean pasta and no-oil, low-sodium, vegan mayo!
Ingredients
- 3 cups green lentil pasta, cooked al dente (cooked amount in 12 ounce box)
- 1 1/2 cups No-Oil Mayo (link to recipe in instructions)
- 1 cup diced red onion
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper
- 1 cup diced carrot
- 1 cup diced yellow bell pepper
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1 jalapeno, fine diced & most seeds removed (optional)
Instructions
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Prepare the No-Oil Mayo.
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Cook the green lentil pasta to just before done (al dente). Drain and rinse with cold water, set aside.
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Chop all your veggies. This step can be done the night before--just store the veggies in individual containers or baggies.
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Add the chopped veggies, sunflower seeds and jalapeno to the reserved pasta and stir to combine.
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Add the no-oil mayo and stir well to combine. Allow to sit in refrigerator for at least 2 to 3 hours before serving, can be made the day before.
Recipe Notes
Store leftovers in a glass container, keeps well for up to 5 days.
Makes about 8 cups.
If you give this Nutritarian Macaroni Salad recipe a try, I’d love to hear what you think! Please leave a recipe rating and comment below!
Thank you thank you thank you!!!!
I recently came back to the nutritarian lifestyle. I found your website, again, thank you, and am back on track. You have helped me to organize my Meal planning and have shared tasty recipes, all of which have made this time feel, dare I say, easy!! I am down 30 pounds and counting. I have a ways to go, but with your help, I now feel more confident.
I can’t wait to put this macaroni salad in front of our family. They think my husband and I are crazy for eating this way. You are very much appreciated in our house.
Gratefully yours,
Nora
WOW Nora!!
Thank you SO, SO much for such an uplifting (and highly-motivating) comment on your experience with the site!
All I’ve ever wanted is for people to find this lifestyle “easier” and to know that’s happened for you and your husband is absolutely wonderful to hear!
I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful comment–please know it is so appreciated!
I hope you and your broader family enjoy the recipe–please let me know what you think!
xo, Kristen
This looks great! If I can’t find green lentil pasta what would be a good sub? Is whole wheat pasta ok?
Thanks!
Hi Carrie!
I’m so excited you’re going to try it!
Yes, if you can’t find the green lentil pasta you could certainly use whole wheat, just keep in mind you’re going to want to portion it out if you’re following the 6-week plan, since we can only have 1 cup of whole grains daily!
xo, Kristen
Hi Kristen! The last time i commented on a post i hated vegetables! That was months ago but now i am beginning to enjoy salads and many of your recipes! I have lost 27 lbs and am devoted to this lifestyle! My question is, Do you have a book coming out soon? I would love that! Thx for all your help!
Taxi
Loved the video! One of the things I liked is the speed, not too fast but fast enough. Funny but some videos for food run through without giving you a chance to follow. Pictures are nice and bright, very enticing. This looks like a good one and hoping to fix it soon. I don’t usually comment on a recipe until I try it but I did want you to know I enjoyed the video and keep them coming.
Tamar,
Oh my gosh–you have no idea how awesome it is to hear that you liked the video, Tamar!! I can’t thank you enough for leaving your feedback on this–it’s new creative process for me and wonderful to know it’s translating!!
Let me know what you think of the recipe!
xo, Kristen
Went to a dinner party tonight and brought this, everyone loved that it was healthy. I think it’s smart to tell everyone so they don’t expect a mayonnaise taste. I’m happy to have this as a substantial side dish too, as it can get to feel like leaves are the only thing in the stomach after a while. All the crunch is great. I think I’ll throw jalapeno in next time.
Thanks.
Peter.
I made this dish tonight and it was quite tasty! I like my macaroni salad a bit twangy so I added a bit more vinegar and mustard. Best part is that my hubby also gave it two thumbs up! Thanks for sharing. Your recipes are so inspiring!
Hi again Kate!
Thank you again for taking the time to review the Macaroni salad!! And I agree on the twangy note!!
Two thumbs up from hubby–I will take that as a major score!!!
Okay, now I have to know what you made with the BBQ sauce and Mac salad??
xo, Kristen
We are trying to introduce my parents to plant based eating. We used the barbecue sauce for open face bbq sandwiches. Toasted gf bread, tempeh, bbq sauce, sliced onion, Dijon mustard :-). The macaroni salad was the perfect side dish. We also had your citrus dressing with kale salad. Everyone raved about the meal, so I’d say it was a hit!
I have a bag of red lentil pasta from Trader Joe’s in my cabinet….will that work? Thanks, looks yummy!!
Hi Susan!
I’ve never tried this particular recipe with any other type of pasta but I’m sure it would work! If you give it a try please let me know how it turns out!
xo, Kristen
Hi, I made this found it really good, it’s going to take me longer on program to get used to the no salt, but it’s really good. I found some good lentil pasta, only one ingredient at my local Walmart and it wasn’t bad in price. I found will need to 1/2 batch, in order for me to eat it all in time, Thank you for sharing all your recipes and wisdom you have learned.