Description
Tender penne pasta tossed with crumbled feta, sweet dried cranberries, crunchy toasted walnuts, fresh baby spinach, and thinly sliced red onion in a bright, honey-sweetened orange vinaigrette with Dijon mustard. A fresh, vibrant, and crowd-pleasing salad ready in 20 minutes that works beautifully as a side dish, potluck contribution, or standalone lunch.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 8 oz penne pasta
- ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup toasted walnuts, chopped
- 2 cups baby spinach
- ¼ cup red onion, thinly sliced
For the Orange Vinaigrette:
- ¼ cup fresh orange juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Cook the penne in a large pot of well-salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water to stop cooking, and spread on a baking sheet to cool completely.
- While the pasta cools, toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3–4 minutes until golden and fragrant. Remove and roughly chop once cooled.
- Make the vinaigrette. Whisk together the fresh orange juice, olive oil, honey, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper until fully emulsified and smooth. Taste and adjust with more honey for sweetness or more salt as needed.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled penne, baby spinach, dried cranberries, crumbled feta, toasted walnuts, and sliced red onion.
- Pour the orange vinaigrette over the salad and toss gently until everything is evenly and thoroughly coated.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 hour before serving for deeper flavor. Toss again just before plating.
Notes
- Cool the pasta completely before dressing — warm pasta absorbs all the vinaigrette immediately and the salad ends up dry and under-dressed by the time it reaches the table.
- Add the baby spinach right before serving if making ahead — spinach wilts quickly once dressed and loses its fresh texture within an hour.
- Toast the walnuts even if it feels like an optional step — toasting deepens their flavor significantly and adds a warmth that raw walnuts simply do not have.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes