Southwest Pasta Salad with Chili Lime Dressing

There are a few weeks left of summer, so there's plenty of time to get this great pasta salad onto the menu of your next picnic or get together. This salad has the best flavor! A spunky dressing combines with corn, black beans, onions, cilantro and of course, pasta, to really make your taste buds sing! It's a nice change of pace from the traditional Italian pasta salad, and would be great alongside grilled meat or even fajitas!

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Southwest Pasta Salad With Chili Lime Dressing

Dressing:
2/3 cup light sour cream
1 tsp. chili powder
zest and juice of 1 lime
salt & pepper

Salad:
3 cups pasta shells
1 can corn
1/4 cup green onions, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 to 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped

Whisk all dressing ingredients together until smooth. Taste and adjust salt as necessary. Chill, covered, until ready to use.

For the salad, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water. Drain and rinse with cold water.

To the cooked pasta, stir in the corn, green onions, black beans, cheese, jalapeno, and cilantro. Add the dressing and stir well to combine. Refrigerate a couple hours to let the flavors meld.

Recipe Source: Adapted from Jo and Sue