Easy California Cobb Pasta Salad
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Wow everyone at your summer picnics and BBQs this year when you bring this amazing California Cobb Pasta Salad! Diced ham, crumbled bacon, boiled eggs, red onion, tomatoes, lettuce, avocado, and blue cheese make up this easy pasta salad! Full of fresh ingredients and super easy to make, what more could you ask for?!
Taking salad favorites and making them a little more friendly for picnics or BBQs is a total passion of mine. A California cobb is hands down one of my favorite salads so of course I had to create a California cobb pasta salad that is filled with creamy blue cheese, smooth avocado and, of course, bacon!
I make this California cobb pasta salad super easy to make by using a premade blue cheese dressing. Be sure to choose one that is refrigerated and comes with actual blue cheese chunks for the best flavor possible.
California Pasta Salad Ingredients
- Pasta – I like corkscrew pasta in this cold pasta salad but you can use pretty much any short cut pasta.
- Ham – This is a great recipe to use leftover ham.
- Hard Boiled Eggs
- Bacon – Measure this with your heart.
- Red Onion
- Tomato – Only a fresh tomato works here. I do not recommend substituting canned tomatoes.
- Lettuce
- Chunky Bleu Cheese Dressing
- Avocado
- Crumbled Bleu Cheese
Essential Items for This Recipe
A traditional California cobb salad includes chicken but I swapped it out for diced ham so I didn’t have to cook any chicken breast. It made it a little faster and easier. Obviously, feel free to use cooked, diced chicken in place of the ham if you prefer. Or add both if you want the extra protein!
You can definitely make this ahead of time but only put a tiny bit of dressing on to keep the pasta from sticking. Then, stir in the remaining dressing just before serving.
I also usually add my avocado just before serving. If you need to take this on go, toss the avocado in some fresh lemon juice before adding it to the salad to keep it from browning.
If you aren’t a big fan of blue cheese, you can substitute another favorite cheese to mix in. The blue cheese is definitely the most classic option but goat cheese or a similar softer cheese would be fine.
This cobb salad with pasta is always a huge hit whenever I make it. I love how simple it is to make and all the flavor it gets from the fresh ingredients and chunky Bleu cheese dressing. California cobb pasta salad is definitely a staple on the table at any summer BBQ or picnic we host.
More Cold Salad Recipes
If you loved this cobb salad recipe, check out these other great recipes:
California Cobb Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound corkscrew pasta cooked al dente and rinsed with cold water
- 1 1/2 cup cooked ham diced
- 3 hard boiled eggs roughly chopped
- 6 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
- 1/2 red onion diced
- 1 tomato cored and diced
- 1 cup chopped lettuce
- 1 1/4 cup Chunky Bleu Cheese dressing
- 1 avocado diced
- 1/4 cup crumbled bleu cheese
Video
Instructions
- I๏ปฟn a large bowl, combine pasta through tomato. Toss to combine. Refrigerate until 10 minutes before ready to serve.1 pound corkscrew pasta cooked al dente and rinsed with cold water, 1 1/2 cup cooked ham, 3 hard boiled eggs, 6 slices bacon, 1/2 red onion, 1 tomato
- W๏ปฟhen ready to serve, stir in dressing and chopped lettuce.1 1/4 cup Chunky Bleu Cheese dressing, 1 cup chopped lettuce
- Top with avocado and bleu cheese.1 avocado, 1/4 cup crumbled bleu cheese
Notes
- T๏ปฟhe pasta salad can be made ahead of time. Mix in a small amount of dressing to keep the pasta from sticking and then add the rest just before serving.
Nutrition
