Creamy Italian Pasta Salad

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Do you have certain things that always make you think of your childhood? It could be a food, an activity, or even a song. In my mind camping is one of those things that immediately makes me think of my childhood. My family loves camping and fishing and sitting around a campfire. Just the smell of a campfire takes me right back to being a kid. Another thing that always reminds me of my childhood is Kool-Aid. We always had a pitcher of  Kool-Aid in the fridge or Kool-Aid popsciles in the freezer. My mom still to this day always has Kool-Aid on hand.

As my kids continue to get older I want to share those memories with them and help us create more memories with my girls! Last week we decided to share these memories with our girls and had a campfire in our backyard and roasted hot dogs! We had Kool-Aid of course, too!

Kool-Aid has gotten way cooler since I was kid with the new Kool-Aid Easy Mix bottles!

We went to a demo to and picked up cherry, fruit punch and grape at our local Walmart.

Gone are the days you have to make a whole pitcher now you can make it in a glass or one water bottle at a time! Just add water and you are good to go. Easy peasy! Now that our drink and dinner are covered we had to have a fabulous side dish. My favorite side dish hands down is Creamy Italian Pasta Salad! My friend gave this recipe to me a while ago and it is my go to dish to take to any function! It’s easy and delicious!

Creamy Italian Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 box of cooked pasta (any shape works but I like shells)
• 1 C. cut up carrots
• 1 C. broccoli florets
• 1 C. cubed cheese (Whatever cheese you have on hand works. I have used cheddar, colby, monterey or even pepper jack if you want a kick.)
• 1 C. grape tomatoes
• 1 can olives, drained
• 1 C. Miracle Whip
• 1 C. Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
• 1 package of Italian dressing mix

Directions:

This recipe couldn’t be simpler. Cook pasta to al dente. While pasta is cooking mix Miracle Whip, Zesty Italian Dressing and Italian dressing package in a small bowl until all incorporated.

Drain pasta when done and pour into large bowl and top with tomatoes, cheese, olives and broccoli.

Pour sauce mixture over and stir to coat all ingredients! 

Refrigerate until chilled! Told you so easy and trust me delicious!!!

What is your favorite side dish? I would love to try some new recipes, share in the comments!