If you’ve been to Plates & Palates in Bountiful, then you’ve probably had their Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad! It is to die for delicious and I’ve been trying to recreate this recipe for years! I finally feel confident enough in my recipe to share it on my blog! So without further ado, here is my recipe for the much anticipated and highly delicious recipe, Almost Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad! Make it with me!
What is in this Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad?
Red grapes, bowtie noodles, cubed chicken, green onions, slivered almonds, and celery are the base of this delicious Pasta Salad!
Tie it all together with a silky smooth lemon tarragon dressing and you’ll fall in love with this new dish.
I almost always double this recipe when I make it! Making it as it is written will give you 6 servings. If you want to double it- you will obviously get closer to 10-12 servings.
It will go further if served as a side dish than a main course, but I love it so much, at my house it’s always a double batch!
What is Plates & Palates?
Plates & Palates is a delicious restaurant in West Bountiful. It is a very popular lunch destination. This restaurant is known for it’s delicious fresh salads, sandwiches, and desserts!
One of their most popular menu items in the Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad.
How to make the Lemon Tarragon dressing
The trick to getting the dressing just right is to 1. make it in a high powered blender like a blend-tech and 2. always always always use fresh tarragon and fresh lemon juice.
Trust me, it will not be the same without it!
The secret to this pasta salad is doing it in two parts. You have to first assemble the salad and all it’s ingredients and toss it with half of the prepared dressing. Allow it to chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours, or up to overnight.
Then, when you are ready to serve, you toss it with the remaining dressing! This allows the pasta to really soak up the delicious flavor of the sauce.
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Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad
If you've been to Plates & Palates in Bountiful, then you've probably had their Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad! The best copycat Lemon Tarragon Pasta Salad!
Ingredients
- SALAD:
- 1 (16 ounce) box of bowtie noodles
- 2 cups red grapes
- 1 cup celery, diced
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
- 1 bunch of green onions, chopped
- 2 cups cooked cubed chicken
- DRESSING:
- 1 1/4 cup regular mayonnaise
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 lemons juiced and zested
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, minced
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
Instructions
- Cook 1 pound of bowtie noodles according to package directions. Pour them into a colander and run cool water through them to lower the temperature.
- Into a large bowl, place the drained pasta, red grapes, celery, almonds, green onions and chicken.
- To make the dressing, roughly chop two tablespoons of the fresh tarragon and place it in a high powered blender. Add the mayo, buttermilk, onion powder, zest and juice of two lemons, sugar, and honey. Blend on high power for 30 seconds, or until dressing is smooth and frothy.
- Add half of the dressing to the salad and stir to combine. Cover the salad and the remaining half of the dressing and chill for 1-2 hours. Pour the rest of the dressing over the salad just before serving.
- Serve and enjoy!
I couldn’t find fresh tarragon anywhere. Do you think fresh basil would be a good substitute?
I can usually find fresh tarragon at Kroger, Sprouts, or Trader Joe’s. I would try to find dried before I trying basil. The tarragon is such a delicious main flavor element in this dish💚