Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

As requested by Lesley, this is the recipe of the pasta salad that Trent and I served at our wedding lunch, if you can remember that far back. I did get it from "Allrecipes," I love this site.

Ingredients

1 (12 ounce) package uncooked tri-color rotini pasta

10 slices bacon (I use 1 ½ cup of real bacon bits, or as much as you want, It saves me time)

1 cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons dry ranch salad dressing mix (1 package)

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic pepper

1/2 cup milk, or as needed

1 large tomato, chopped (I use this chopper HERE, I use it for onions as well. )

1 (4.25 ounce) can sliced black olives

1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; cook rotini at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes; drain.

2. Place bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat and cook until evenly brown. Drain and chop. (Skip if using bacon bits.)

3. In a large bowl, mix mayonnaise, ranch dressing mix, garlic powder, and garlic pepper. Stir in milk until smooth. 

4. Place rotini, bacon, tomato, black olives and cheese in bowl and toss to coat with dressing. Cover and chill at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Toss with additional milk if the salad seems a little dry.