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Classic Macaroni Salad with Ham

Source of Recipe

Southern Living


Recipe Introduction

Are you looking for an easy, fuss-free recipe to make for a potluck? Give this one a try, because you can’t get much easier than a recipe with only two steps. True, there is a little prep work involved, but nothing more intense than chopping a little ham and a few vegetables.This recipe is similar to a layered salad in that you can do a lot of the prep work in advance and store everything in air-tight containers in the refrigerator. When it comes time to assemble the salad, simply boil some pasta, stir in the ham, vegetables, mayonnaise and seasoning, then cover and chill at least two hours. This salad recipe, sent in by Keva Colston of Baton Rouge Louisiana, was published in the June 2007 issue of Southern Living and quickly garnered many favorable reviews and comments from readers. It seems most Southern cooks have a favorite cold pasta salad or layered salad they like to make on a warm afternoon. Not only are pasta and layered salads refreshing and satisfying as a main dish salad, they are versatile enough so that you can swap out ingredients with whatever you have in the fridge or garden.

List of Ingredients

° 3 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
° 1 cup chopped cooked ham
° 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
° 1 tomato, seeded and diced
° 1 small red bell pepper, diced
° 1 small yellow bell pepper, diced
° 1 small green bell pepper, diced
° 1¼ cups mayonnaise
° 1½ tsp Cajun seasoning
° 2 tsp lemon juice
° Salt to taste



Recipe

Prepare macaroni according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool.

Combine macaroni and next 9 ingredients until blended. Add salt. Cover and chill at least 2 hours.


Makes 8 to 10 servings