Elote Inspired Pasta Salad

I love the flavors of Mexican elote so I used some components of it (mayo, lime, chili powder, cotija) to make a pasta salad!! I love using inspiration from different dishes that I love to eat and figuring out a way to combine those flavors with pasta. :)

The recipe makes enough for 6 side dish servings, if you're planning on making for a large gathering you could definitely double it. It does refrigerate well, so you can def make it a day ahead of time. I suggest bringing it back to life with an additional 1/4 cup of mayo + a squirt of fresh lime juice before serving after chilling for a longer period of time.

What you need:

• 3/4 cup mayo
• 3-4 tbsp fresh lime juice (about one lime)
• 1/2 tsp chili powder or cayenne pepper (or everything but the elote powder from Trader Joes!)
• 1/2 lb of pasta
• 1 cup grilled corn (off the cob)
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 1/3 cup diced fresh jalapeno (2-3 whole jalapenos)
• 1/2 cup cotija cheese

What to do:

1. ​Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions. Once it's finished cooking, rinse with cold water to cool.
2. Combine the mayo, lime juice and seasoning at the bottom of a large salad bowl and whisk to completely combine.
3. Add the cold pasta, corn, onion, jalapeno, and cotija cheese to the pasta salad dressing and toss together until all of the pasta is coated in the dressing.
4. Serve immediately at room temp or chill in the fridge and eat within a couple of days.