Wacky Mac Salad

Great light lunch on a hot day!

This is a great hot weather lunch dish all by itself.  A bowl of this and a nice fizzy drink or some sweet tea, lemonade or other ice cold beverage and you’ve got yourself a summer lunch favorite that you are really going to like and it’s really easy to make and very difficult to mess up the recipe as you’ll see.  I measure most everything by handfuls and adjust ingredients to suit whatever I have in the fridge.

Ingredients:

• Package of “Wacky Mac”, rotini, elbow macaroni, penne pasta or other shaped pasta. I like the Wacky Mac. Nothing absorbs the dressing like Wacky Mac.
• ½ cup Miracle Whip
• ½ cup Mayonnaise
• ¼ cup Ranch Dressing
• 1 handful of diced olives
• 1 handful of cheddar cheese cubes
• 3 slices of bologna, turkey breast slices, Wham (for vegetarians) or other lunch meat cut into 3 inch strips (about a handful when you’re done
• 2-3 sweet pickles or 4-5 gherkins sliced (also about a handful of pickle chips
• 1 handful of sweet pickle relish
• 1 handful of finely chopped celery
• 1 handful finely chopped onions
• 1 handful finely chopped sweet bell pepper
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 handful finely chopped boiled egg (about two large eggs worth)

Directions:

1. Cook Wacky Mac according to package directions.  Should be slightly al dente (firm).  Drain and place in large salad bowl
2. Add Miracle Whip, Mayo, Ranch Dressing, then scrape everything else off the cutting board into the bowl with the pasta. 
3. Sprinkle celery seed over the rest and stir with a big spoon till the ingredients are evenly distributed.
4. Chill in the fridge for an hour and serve.  If you’re impatient or like it that way, you can even eat it while it’s still warm. 

* Serves 4-6 people or just me if I’m really starving.