Well it cooked the pasta... but was it worth it?

Nothing too exciting to report on the kitchen just yet, although we did have a go around with the sink/countertop people as they were trying to sell us something other than what we ordered to make it easier for them...

I mentioned yesterday that we bought a single burner that we could plug in to see if I could make any dinners with it. Well, it did work... sort of. I needed to cook some pasta and it took a good long while for the water to boil (yes, I even covered it!). I eventually got the pasta done, but I would either do it in smaller batches next time, or just forget it, as using the burner just didn't seem worth the effort.

However, I was glad that we were able to try out tonight's dinner of Macaroni Salad with Bacon, Peas, and Creamy Dijon Dressing. The piquant dressing is made from cream cheese, shallots, plain yogurt, sour cream, Dijon, fresh lemon juice and a dash of vinegar. Thick and creamy with a mild tang would be an appropriate description of the dressing. The bulk of the salad is whole wheat macaroni mixed with green peas, roasted red bell peppers, red onions, parsley and a smidge of lemon zest. In some recipes when you mix all of the dressing with the pasta, it tends to absorb most of it and become somewhat pasty if you make it ahead of time. This recipe though is great to make ahead of time as you only need to mix half of the dressing when you make the salad. Right before serving, you then add the rest of the dressing so the salad stays creamy. Crumbled smoky bacon adds a salty finish with some additional crunchy texture.

Recipes
Macaroni Salad with Bacon, Peas, and Creamy Dijon Dressing