The ideas, photos and recipes coming to us from our partnership with School Meals That Rock are an amazing source of inspiration. We loved seeing Joelle Bradley’s adorable post with her unique take on three-bean salad at Redwood Elementary in California’s Mendocino County. And we weren’t alone! Lots of folks wanted her recipe too. It’s a great way to get kids eating whole grains and plant-based proteins, and lots of colorful veggies. Eye appeal = kid appeal!

Redwood Elementary Three-Bean Pasta Salad

For the Italian Dressing:

• 5 cups vegetable oil
• 1 1/4 cups lemon juice
• 1 1/4 cups white vinegar
• 5 tsp salt
• 5 tsp sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 2 1/2 tsp onion salt
• 2 1/2 tsp paprika
• 2 1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves
• 3/4 tsp ground thyme leaves
• 10 cloves garlic, crushed

Method: Shake all ingredients in tightly covered jar, refrigerate at least 2 hours. Shake before serving.

For the pasta salad:

• 1 #10 can garbanzo beans
• 1 #10 can kidney beans
• 1 #10 can green beans
• 1 chopped large red onion
• 2 lb broccoli florets
• 3 pints grape tomatoes
• 5 lb cooked, chilled Barilla Whole Grain pasta (Rotini works well)

Toss in Italian dressing (below) to taste, cover and refrigerate overnight. On day of service, toss with broccoli florets, tomatoes and pasta.

For more K-12 specific recipes, click here.