Every summer BBQ and picnic needs this roasted vegetable pasta salad with a tahini maple dressing! The roasted vegetables have a lovely sweetness that works perfectly with the creamy dressing made without mayo, and make for a moreish side dish everyone will love.
If you love salads for your summer lunches as much as my family does, then you may like to see my cucumber dill pasta salad, mango and cucumber salad and apple, fennel and radish salad. Both perfect for warmer days!
This roasted vegetable pasta salad is perfect for summer BBQs, potlucks or for entertaining during the holidays - it's very versatile! As a pasta salad without mayo, it's suitable for a vegan diet and can easily be gluten free using suitable pasta alternatives too.
This post was updated with slight amendments to the recipe, new photos and tips on 1 February 2022.
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⭐ Why this recipe is so good
- Sweet and creamy – roasting the vegetables brings out their natural sweetness, which pairs so well with the creamy tahini maple dressing.
- Perfect for picnics, potlucks and summer BBQs – a tasty side that goes well with meats, vegetarian or vegan dishes. Adult and kid-friendly I find.
- Easy to make – a super simple recipe that requires just a bit of chopping and then time for the vegetables in the oven!
🥗 Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
This roasted vegetable pasta salad requires fresh vegetables and pantry staples. The main ingredients you will need are:
- Pasta – I use fusilli, but other types such as penne would also work well. Use a gluten free option if required.
- Bell peppers, zucchini and butternut squash – this is the combination I use, but you could also swap in and out for those you have to hand such as broccoli or other types of squash.
- Tahini and maple syrup – the main ingredients of the dressing, used as a swap for traditional mayo to keep the recipe vegan and suitable for a low histamine diet.
📖 Variations to the recipe
This pasta salad can easily be adapted to the vegetables you have to hand. Broccoli, other forms of squash and cauliflower are all good options.
If you aren't a fan of thyme, then dried oregano or parsley would also be nice.
🔪 Step by step instructions
It's super simple to make this roasted vegetable pasta salad recipe, and it takes just a few steps:
Step 1
Place the diced vegetables on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle over the thyme. Roast until tender.
Step 2
Cook your pasta according to packet instructions, adding a pinch of salt to the pan.
Step 3
Combine the ingredients for the tahini maple dressing. Stir well, adding more water if required until it forms a creamy dressing. Adjust the consistency to taste, by adding more tahini or water.
Step 4
Once the pasta and vegetables have cooled, combine in your serving bowl. Sprinkle over the fresh herbs and pumpkin seeds and season with salt and pepper. Then drizzle over the dressing and stir to coat the pasta.
💭 Recipe tips and notes
- Dice the vegetables into small pieces. Around 1-2cm feels the right size for a pasta salad, and also lessens cook time.
- Stir the tahini dressing so that it becomes creamy in texture. It will first look rather gritty, but keep stirring until it is creamy. Adjust the consistency with more water (to thin) or more tahini (to thicken) according to taste preference.
- If you prefer a less sweet taste to the dressing, simply leave out the maple syrup.
- Adjust the amount of salt and pepper (if using) to taste preference.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, this pasta salad is made without mayo or cheese making it suitable for a vegan diet.
You could also use broccoli, cauliflower or fennel. Just adjust cook times as needed for them.
Pair with chicken or turkey, cheeses or nuts and seeds to make it more hearty. And serving alongside burgers, skewers and potato salad makes for a tasty BBQ!
🥬 More healthy salads
Come summer I'm sure you will love these salad recipes for lunch, picnics or to go with BBQ food!
I’m always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes. And please do leave a star rating ⭐⭐⭐ if you tried the recipe!
📖 Recipe
Roasted Vegetable Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups pasta
- ½ red bell pepper diced
- ½ green bell pepper diced
- ¼ zucchini diced
- 1 cup butternut squash diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds optional
Tahini maple dressing
- 2 tablespoon tahini
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- 3 tablespoon water
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C / 390F and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Once at temperature arrange your vegetables on the tray and drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle over the thyme. Bake for 20-25 minutes until tender.
- Cook your pasta according to packet instructions.
- Prepare the tahini maple dressing by combining all ingredients and stirring very thoroughly until they become a creamy dressing. It will look 'gritty' to begin with, but keep stirring for a creamy dressing.
- Once cooled, combine your pasta and roasted vegetables, drizzle over the tahini maple dressing and sprinkle on some pumpkin seeds.
Notes
- Stir the tahini maple dressing thoroughly. It will look gritty to begin with, but keep stirring for a creamy dressing. Adjust with more tahini (to thicken) or more water (to thin) as required to taste preference.
- Dice the vegetables fairly small so they combine well with the pasta, and to lessen cook time.
- Check the vegetables after 20 minutes of cook time. If they are turning slightly light golden brown at the edges they should be ready.
- Allow the pasta and vegetables to cool completely before combining with the dressing.
- wheat (if using regular pasta) and tahini (sesame seeds), which score 1.
- black pepper (which is optional), scores 2.
Debbie Young says
Are you able to eat this over a couple of days?? I freeze everything I cook to keep Histamine down, but would I need to with this?? It would be so nice to have something premodern that I could take for lunch.
throughthefibrofog says
Hi Debbie, it really depends on how you do with histamine formation on food. It really varies for each person. So I can eat food for lunch the next day if I made it the night before and kept it in a sealed container in the fridge, but for other people that would be too long. I would test a little and see how you get on as I don't think it would freeze too well.
Sheryl Chan says
What a great mix of colours and nutrients and I love how it's suitable for many diets!
throughthefibrofog says
thanks Sheryl! Hope it is one that is suitable for you too.
Shruti Chopra says
My mouth is watering looking at that - I love pasta. One day, whenever I make it to London next, would love to bring a whole load of low-histamine ingredients and cook with you (I guess I've just self-invited myself Claire!) But it would be so brilliant to see your brilliance in action. I love your recipes and that isn't even an exaggeration 😀
throughthefibrofog says
Aww, Shruti! I would love that - we can do a joint cook-along and come up with some delicious food. It would be so lovely.
Carrie says
This looks amazing. I can't eat a lot of pasta, but I love it so much, especially cold pasta salads. Saved to try.
throughthefibrofog says
Really hope you like it! You could always up the veggies and have a little less pasta if that works better for you 🙂