Dress up your dinner table with this spooktacular Halloween pasta salad.

This black pasta is studded with veggies in fun shapes and delicious Italian dressing sauce.

Kids and adults will get a kick out of this Halloween side dish.

Halloween Pasta Recipe idea

We’re moving into the holiday season, with Halloween coming first.

You may be planning a fun Halloween dinner party and want a themed food idea.

This Halloween pasta recipe is just what you need for your dinner menu.

Now, you could make a classic recipe, but why not have fun? Find more Halloween ideas on our Halloween bucket list.

The bowtie pasta gives it a spooky feel; even the picky eaters will want to try out all the bright and fun-shaped food in this salad.

This is also the perfect dish you can make on Halloween night paired with pizza, a spooky spaghetti dish, or another Halloween meal idea.

What Do You Need

Farfalle Pasta. You can use any style of regular pasta, but this is what I used. You will cook it as directed on the box of pasta.

Black Food Coloring. Now we colored our pasta black. If you want to do a different color or multiple colors, go right ahead. Just reach for whatever color you want.

Peppers. I did orange bell peppers and yellow. Then, use cookie cutters to create fun shapes to stud the pasta salad with.

Marinated Mozzarella balls. These are the perfect hit of cheese in this pasta salad, and it offers a spooky eyeball feel!

Edamame. Go ahead and add in some edamame for a tasty twist. It fits the dish and is an excellent source of nutrients as well.

Red Onion. It adds a nice pop of color and enhances the flavor of the pasta salad.

Black Olives. The olives give a fun feel to the pasta dish. It reminds me of a pupil of an eye.

Dressing. For the dressing, I reached for a store-bought Italian dressing for quick prep.

Now, you are more than welcome to make homemade dressing if you would like.

Variations To Halloween Salad

Cut up and add pepperoni for a twist of color and protein.
You can use red bell peppers as well.
Add in green olives with pimentos if you like them.
Change up the color of the pasta to purple, green, red, etc. Any fun bright color works great.
If you want more pops of color, you can add cherry tomatoes.

How to make a Halloween Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Serving Size: 6-8

Pasta

1 (16 oz) box of farfalle pasta (for the shapes of bats)
Black Food coloring
Water

Salad

1 orange bell pepper, cut into stars
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into moons
1 cup marinated mozzarella balls
1 cup shelled edamame, cooked and cooled
½ cup Italian dressing
¼ cup red onion, chopped
¼ cup black olives (for creepy eyes)

Directions

Prepare pasta as instructed on the packaging, al dente.
Rinse the cooked pasta under cold water until completely cool.
Fill a pan or bowl with the cooked pasta and enough water to cover it.
Add black food coloring and stir until well combined. Soak the pasta for 5 minutes, frequently stirring to distribute the color.
Rinse the colored pasta under cold water in a strainer until the water runs clear.
Place colored pasta in a large bowl and toss with the remaining ingredients.

Additional tips. We like to drizzle a little olive oil on our pasta and add parmesan cheese or another cheese of your choice.

Can I Make This Halloween Side Dish In Advance

Go right ahead and make this dish a day in advance. I wouldn’t go further than that, as the veggies will lose that crisp texture.

Add a bit more dressing and toss well when you serve the pasta that has soaked up most of the sauce.

The best part about this Halloween recipe is that it is super easy to make, so you can have it ready in less than 20 minutes.

How to Get Fun Shapes Out Of Veggies

Reach for smaller-sized cookie cutters, then cut the peppers so they are on flatter surfaces.

And then cut away, making fun shapes.

Half moons, stars, pumpkins, bats, you could do any shapes you want or have on hand.

Does the Black Pasta Bleed Color

I am sure you might be curious if the pasta will bleed color.

What you will do is dye the pasta as directed below.

Then you will let it soak in the color, then rinse the pasta well under cold water.

This is going to remove all the excess dye.

This step will help prevent your dishes from getting food color dye on them.

If you rinse well in cold water, you should have no issues with the pasta.

Just don’t skip that step.

Storage Of Pasta Salad

Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge for around 3-4 days.

You will find the veggies begin to break down after a few days.

It is best served within the first two days of eating it.

This Halloween season, up your game by creating fun + spooky meal ideas by starting with this fun spooktacular dish.

Grab the ingredient list below and print out this unique pasta salad.

You can make your shopping list and everything else you need for your Halloween party.

Be sure to check out our entertaining post for more tips.

Find more Halloween recipes below:

Cookie Pizza Oreos Recipe with a Halloween theme

How To Make Halloween Witch Fingers

Ghost Cupcakes

Halloween Cocktail Using Black Vodka

Free Halloween Activities Printables For Kids