Servings: 6

Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette: subheading: Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette:
2 ounces sun-dried tomatoes (dried, not in oil) 2 ounces sun-dried tomatoes (dried, not in oil)
2 cups water, boiling 2 cups water, boiling
¾ cup tomato juice, no salt added (could use V8) ¾ cup tomato juice, no salt added (could use V8)
2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 tablespoon tomato paste
¼ teaspoon pepper ¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, peeled 2 cloves garlic, peeled
 
Salad: subheading: Salad:
4 cups spinach, torn 4 cups spinach, torn
4 cups shell pasta, cooked 4 cups shell pasta, cooked
1 cup tomatoes, chopped 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
½ cup shallot, finely chopped ½ cup shallot, finely chopped
6 ounces frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and chopped 6 ounces frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and chopped
¼ cup black olives, sliced ¼ cup black olives, sliced
¾ cup feta cheese ¾ cup feta cheese

Soak the sun-dried tomatoes in the boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain but reserve the water. Place tomatoes, ¾ cup tomato water, and next 7 ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.
Combine spinach and next 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Pour vinaigrette over spinach mixture and toss well. Sprinkle crumbled feta over servings.

I made this August 30, 2020, to go with Smoked Ribs. It was fine. Not great. The original recipe said to use only 1 cup of the dressing but I used it all and it was still sorta dry. It needed something, herbs maybe? Fresh basil would be nice.  I made this August 30, 2020, to go with Smoked Ribs. It was fine. Not great. The original recipe said to use only 1 cup of the dressing but I used it all and it was still sorta dry. It needed something, herbs maybe? Fresh basil would be nice.
Note: I used 4 cups of DRY pasta so it was too much. We couldn't eat it all before it went bad. However, the following days I did heat it up and add some crushed red pepper and it was pretty good.  Note: I used 4 cups of DRY pasta so it was too much. We couldn't eat it all before it went bad. However, the following days I did heat it up and add some crushed red pepper and it was pretty good.