This delicious salad is easy-peasy if you use the Instant Pot to cook the pasta – just a four minute cook time, and the pasta is perfectly done every time. And, you don’t have to boil water and heat up the kitchen while you prepare it!
Using seasonal fruits and dried fruits together you get taste and health benefits in every mouthful. The dressing is lovely – make a double batch and keep some on hand for other salads, too!
If you would like more information about cooking pasta in the Instant Pot, there is an excellent article at Tidbits – the blog of Marci Buttars.
She explains the formula you can use to determine how long to cook any given pasta in the IP. And, not all pastas should go into the magic pressure cooker…items like ravioli do NOT do well under pressure.
Another great recipe using pasta is available from Jeffrey over at Pressure Luck. His Instant Pot Unbaked Ziti recipe is fantastic!
| Prep Time | 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | 4 minutes |
| Passive Time | 10 minutes |
| Servings |
people
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- 1 pound penne or ziti pasta cooked in the Instant Pot
- 4 cups baby spinach
- 2 cups strawberries sliced
- 2 cups pineapple diced or chunked small
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries or blueberries
- 1/2 cup cashews, pistachios, or walnuts
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt or coconut yogurt unsweetened, plain
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, or more to taste
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1 cup fresh orange juice
- 2 Tablespoons poppyseeds
- dash salt and pepper
Ingredients
Salad
Orange Poppyseed Dressing
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- Put a mesh strainer in your Instant Pot. Put the pound of noodles in the strainer and add 8 cups of water. Lock on your lid, set your toggle to sealing, and set manual/pressure cook for 4 minutes. When done cooking, do a VERY careful quick pressure release. You might have to do it in little bursts so as to not spray all over the kitchen, but you want the pasta out of the pot fairly quickly. Pull the strainer basket up, let it drain a few seconds, and then run the whole basket of pasta under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside to cool.
- Put all the salad ingredients in a large bowl. When the pasta is cool-ish, add to salad.
- Place all the dressing ingredients in a jar and shake them until well blended. Pour over the salad ingredients and toss well. If you are taking this salad to a potluck or picnic, wait to dress the salad when you arrive as the spinach will not hold up well if you carry the salad all dressed.
