{"id":3785,"date":"2025-06-10T20:51:58","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T20:51:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/?p=3785"},"modified":"2025-06-10T20:51:59","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T20:51:59","slug":"classic-macaroni-salad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/?p=3785","title":{"rendered":"Classic Macaroni Salad"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Back in the day I used to work from the upstairs office at my parents house. Every morning, I would load our older dog, Gracie (RIP), into the car and the two of us would make the commute about 8 minutes across town.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3788\" style=\"width:581px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-750x1000.jpg 750w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_4614-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>This was one of Gracie&#8217;s favorite ways to &#8220;work&#8221; in the upstairs office at her grandparents house<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A lot of my lunches during this time consisted of whatever happened to be in the fridge. Danny used to call this going to shop at \u201cSueMart\u201d. I think that it made my mom happy getting to spend time with me at lunch. Looking back, I wish that I hadn\u2019t always been in such a huge rush to eat and get back upstairs to the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This macaroni salad was one that she made often in the summer months. I think that she knew that I was a sucker for any type of cold pasta salad and that is likely why she made it so often.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I have tried to make this a few times (I have an email dated March 30, 2014 where my mom emailed me the recipe) and have struggled getting the dressing to pasta ratio correct. I don\u2019t know for sure, but, my assumption after making it this time is that my mom would cook the entire 16 oz box of pasta to use in this recipe instead of the 8 oz that it calls for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-1024x768.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3789\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-750x563.jpeg 750w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691-500x375.jpeg 500w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2691.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>Sherlock was indifferent towards this recipe due to the inclusion of celery in the ingredients list<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At any rate, this time around I called an audible and only mixed half of the dressing into the pasta + vegetables and it wound up tasting damn near identical to how I remember it from those days eating lunch in the kitchen with my mom. I prepared it for my lunch a few days the same way that she would. She would chop up some type of deli meat and add it to a bowl with the macaroni salad + fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. Then she would hit it with a little dash of cider vinegar to mix everything up before eating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-1024x768.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3790\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-750x563.jpeg 750w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693-500x375.jpeg 500w, https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2693.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This one took me back and I will definitely be making it again.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-wpzoom-recipe-card-block-recipe-card is-style-default header-content-align-left block-alignment-left\" id=\"wpzoom-recipe-card\"><div class=\"recipe-card-image\">\n\t\t\t\t<figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"530\" src=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/IMG_2687-800x530.jpeg\" class=\"wpzoom-recipe-card-image\" alt=\"Classic Macaroni Salad\" id=\"3791\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wpzoom-recipe-card-print-link\">\n\t            <a class=\"btn-print-link no-print\" href=\"#wpzoom-recipe-card\" title=\"Print directions...\" style=\"background-color: #222222;\" data-servings-size=\"5\" data-recipe-id=\"3785\">\n\t            \t<SVG class=\"wpzoom-rcb-icon-print-link\" viewBox=\"0 0 32 32\" width=\"32\" height=\"32\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n \t            \t    <g data-name=\"Layer 55\" id=\"Layer_55\">\n \t            \t        <Path class=\"wpzoom-rcb-print-icon\" d=\"M28,25H25a1,1,0,0,1,0-2h3a1,1,0,0,0,1-1V10a1,1,0,0,0-1-1H4a1,1,0,0,0-1,1V22a1,1,0,0,0,1,1H7a1,1,0,0,1,0,2H4a3,3,0,0,1-3-3V10A3,3,0,0,1,4,7H28a3,3,0,0,1,3,3V22A3,3,0,0,1,28,25Z\" \/>\n \t            \t        <Path class=\"wpzoom-rcb-print-icon\" d=\"M25,31H7a1,1,0,0,1-1-1V20a1,1,0,0,1,1-1H25a1,1,0,0,1,1,1V30A1,1,0,0,1,25,31ZM8,29H24V21H8Z\" \/>\n \t            \t        <Path class=\"wpzoom-rcb-print-icon\" d=\"M25,9a1,1,0,0,1-1-1V3H8V8A1,1,0,0,1,6,8V2A1,1,0,0,1,7,1H25a1,1,0,0,1,1,1V8A1,1,0,0,1,25,9Z\" \/>\n \t            \t        <rect class=\"wpzoom-rcb-print-icon\" height=\"2\" width=\"2\" x=\"24\" y=\"11\" \/>\n \t            \t        <rect class=\"wpzoom-rcb-print-icon\" height=\"2\" width=\"4\" x=\"18\" y=\"11\" \/>\n \t            \t    <\/g>\n \t            \t<\/SVG>\n\t                <span>Print<\/span>\n\t            <\/a>\n\t        <\/div>\n\t\t            <\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"recipe-card-heading\">\n\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"recipe-card-title\">Classic Macaroni Salad<\/h2><span class=\"recipe-card-author\">Recipe by Megan<\/span><\/div><div class=\"recipe-card-details\"><div class=\"details-items\"><div class=\"detail-item detail-item-0\"><span class=\"detail-item-icon oldicon oldicon-food\" style=\"color: #6d767f;\"><\/span><span class=\"detail-item-label\">Servings<\/span><p class=\"detail-item-value\">5<\/p><span class=\"detail-item-unit\">servings<\/span><\/div><div class=\"detail-item detail-item-1\"><span class=\"detail-item-icon oldicon oldicon-clock\" style=\"color: #6d767f;\"><\/span><span class=\"detail-item-label\">Prep time<\/span><p class=\"detail-item-value\">30<\/p><span class=\"detail-item-unit\">minutes<\/span><\/div><div class=\"detail-item detail-item-2\"><span class=\"detail-item-icon foodicons foodicons-cooking-food-in-a-hot-casserole\" style=\"color: #6d767f;\"><\/span><span class=\"detail-item-label\">Cooking time<\/span><p class=\"detail-item-value\">15<\/p><span class=\"detail-item-unit\">minutes<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"recipe-card-ingredients\"><h3 class=\"ingredients-title\">Ingredients<\/h3><ul class=\"ingredients-list layout-1-column\"><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-684895cd62e70\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">8 oz elbow macaroni<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-684895cd62e71\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1 C. Mayonnaise<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-684895cd62e73\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">2 tbsp vinegar<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-684895cd62e74\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1 tsp sugar<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-1749588483277307\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1 tsp salt<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-1749588484243312\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1\/4 tsp ground black pepper<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-1749588485188317\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1 C. thinly sliced celery<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-1749588507101570\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1 C chopped green or red bell pepper<\/span><\/p><\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-item-1749588507931575\" class=\"ingredient-item\"><span class=\"tick-circle\"><\/span><p class=\"ingredient-item-name is-strikethrough-active\"><span class=\"wpzoom-rcb-ingredient-name\">1\/4 C chopped onion<\/span><\/p><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div class=\"recipe-card-directions\"><h3 class=\"directions-title\">Directions<\/h3><ul class=\"directions-list\"><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e78\" class=\"direction-step\">Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and rinse with cold water until completely cool.<\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e79\" class=\"direction-step\">1 large bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir in macaroni, celery, peppers and onions<\/li><li id=\"wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e7a\" class=\"direction-step\">Serve chilled or at room temperature.<\/li><\/ul><\/div><div class=\"recipe-card-notes\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"notes-title\">Notes<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"recipe-card-notes-list\"><\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"Recipe\",\"name\":\"Classic Macaroni Salad\",\"image\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/IMG_2687.jpeg\",\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/IMG_2687-500x500.jpeg\",\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/IMG_2687-500x375.jpeg\",\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/IMG_2687-480x270.jpeg\"],\"description\":\"\",\"keywords\":\"pasta, pasta salad\",\"author\":{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Megan\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-10T20:51:58+00:00\",\"prepTime\":\"PT30M\",\"cookTime\":\"PT15M\",\"totalTime\":\"PT45M\",\"recipeCategory\":[\"Uncategorized\"],\"recipeCuisine\":[],\"recipeYield\":[\"5\",\"5 servings\"],\"nutrition\":{\"@type\":\"NutritionInformation\"},\"recipeIngredient\":[\"8 oz elbow macaroni\",\"1 C. Mayonnaise\",\"2 tbsp vinegar\",\"1 tsp sugar\",\"1 tsp salt\",\"1\\\/4 tsp ground black pepper\",\"1 C. thinly sliced celery\",\"1 C chopped green or red bell pepper\",\"1\\\/4 C chopped onion\"],\"recipeInstructions\":[{\"@type\":\"HowToStep\",\"name\":\"Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and rinse with cold water until completely cool.\",\"text\":\"Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and rinse with cold water until completely cool.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/?p=3785#wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e78\",\"image\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"HowToStep\",\"name\":\"1 large bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir in macaroni, celery, peppers and onions\",\"text\":\"1 large bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir in macaroni, celery, peppers and onions\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/?p=3785#wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e79\",\"image\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"HowToStep\",\"name\":\"Serve chilled or at room temperature.\",\"text\":\"Serve chilled or at room temperature.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\\\/?p=3785#wpzoom-rcb-direction-step-684895cd62e7a\",\"image\":\"\"}]}<\/script><\/div>\n\n\n<p>I omitted the chopped onion from this recipe. I only used about half of the dressing when I mixed it with the pasta and vegetables. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Back in the day I used to work from the upstairs office at my parents house. Every morning, I would load our older dog, Gracie (RIP), into the car and the two of us would make the commute about 8 minutes across town. This was one of Gracie&#8217;s favorite ways to &#8220;work&#8221; in the upstairs &#8230; <\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more-container\"><a title=\"Classic Macaroni Salad\" class=\"read-more button\" href=\"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/?p=3785#more-3785\" aria-label=\"Read more about Classic Macaroni Salad\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3786,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":5,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[42,43],"class_list":["post-3785","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-pasta","tag-pasta-salad","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3785","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3785"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3785\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3794,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3785\/revisions\/3794"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3786"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3785"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3785"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookingwithmydeadmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}