My sister-in-law who raised four boys, all heavily involved in athletics, bestowed this recipe and “you can do it” pep talk to me several years ago when our own boys were just getting started in after school and weekend activities. First she said to feed the boys when they are hungry. Sounds obvious right? Not to me. I thought dinner had to happen right at dinner time, but if practice or commute time or carpool or game or any mix of the above are happening during dinner time, what’s a mom to do? She asked if they are hungry right when they get home from school. Always, right? Then feed them dinner right then and there and do a snack later when you can fit it in. She had great ideas for getting protein in them with smoothies that include peanut butter... but I digress.
Now that the kids are fed, what do WE eat during all. of. the. activities.? Let me introduce you to the Swim Meet Pasta Salad. I feel like swim parents and baseball/softball parents get the award for sitting through the longest of activities. One of the years when we had a baseball player in the house, I made her Swim Meet Pasta Salad on the regular and my husband and I loved it, looked forward to it and were the envy of all other surrounding fans snacking on whatever they could find in their car or at the concession stand. It was easy to mix up the night before, or whenever I had time, and definitely made for a more healthy dinner than I was going to get at any drive-thru. Now that I don’t have a baseball player or swimmer in the house, I’m just looking for an excuse to make it anyway and it makes great lunches for days. It’s also super versatile so just toss in what you have in your fridge or garden and make it your own.
Swim Meet Pasta Salad
Cook one box of rotini or bowtie pasta al dente. Run under cold water to cool.
Add in any, or all, of the following:
broccoli florets (lightly steamed or raw)
cherry tomatoes
raw carrots, bite sized
small cubes of cheese of your choice (I buy cheese sticks and slice them)
small cubes of salami, pepperoni or ham
black olives
bell peppers, bite sized
Mix together with one bottle of Paul Newman's or Olive Garden's Italian Dressing. I occasionally use balsamic dressing, but I found kids tend to like the regular Italian best.
I love to add in some fresh arugula just before heading out the door to each individual serving too!
This is easy to double or triple up for a crowd!
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