Hello Friends,
How is your summer going? Mine has been super busy, which explains the lack of posts recently… I made a cross county roadtrip moving my son Coleman into an apartment in Provo Utah so he can start school at BYU, then sent my cute son Bridger off to serve a 2 year church mission in San Bernardino California (Spanish speaking) and spent a couple of weeks babysitting my sweet grandchildren while Bridger participated in home MTC in Utah.
It has been a full summer already and I have loved it! What have you been up to?
Do you feel like you are actually melting from the heat? I do!! Here in the South it is SO hot this year. I have been avoiding turning on my oven at all costs. So dinners like this Classic Italian Pasta salad have been on the menu!
This salad really hits the spot and is chock full of delicious ingredients.I love to make it for dinner and then have the leftovers for lunch later in the week. My family loves this pasta dish and I love that it is full of lots of fresh veggies and so much flavor. If you want to make it lighter, you can always use chickpea pasta or protein pasta, low fat turkey pepperoni and low fat cheese. Also you can easily make this gluten free by using gluten free pasta.
What you will need to make Classic Italian Pasta Salad:
- Bow Tie Pasta (or your favorite shape of pasta)
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Cucumber, chopped
- Mozzarella Cheese cubed (or mini fresh mozzarella balls)
- Salami or pepperoni (use turkey pepperoni for a lower fat option)
- Black olives, sliced
- Pepperocinis
- Red onion
- Parsley
- Italian Dressing (homemade recipe below or use your favorite store bought)
I love that this salad has endless variations. If you want to switch out the veggies (bell peppers, broccoli, artichoke hearts etc) or the cheese (feta, parmesan, cheddar) or the noodle shapes (shells, penne, fusili or maybe even some tortellini). Honestly, the sky is the limit! I like it this way but experiment with your favorite combinations. I hope you enjoy this classic summer salad as much as we do!
Other great summer salads
- Chicken Poppyseed Salad
- Strawberry Pinenuts and Feta Salad
- Cobb Salad for a Crowd
- Sizzling Chicken Fajita Salad
Pretty Wooden Serving Bowl like the one pictured above here.
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Classic Italian Pasta Salad
Description
Super easy Classic Italian Pasta Salad – with pasta, tomatoes, mozzarella, cucumbers, spicy pepperoni or salami, pepperoncini, olives, and easy Italian dressing.
Ingredients
1/2 pound Pasta
1 1/2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 cup cucumbers, chopped
4–6 ounces of mozzarella cheese, cubed
1/2 pound salami chopped or pepperonis, cut in fourths
1/3 cup olives, sliced
1/3 cup pepperocinis, chopped
1/4 cup red onion, sliced or chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped (optional but adds great flavor)
Easy Italian Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon coarse salt
2 cloves of garlic
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
Optional: 1/4 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes, if you want a little kick to your salad
Instructions
- In salted boiling water, cook pasta according to package directions for al dente pasta. Drain and rinse with cold water until pasta is room temperature. Place pasta in a large bowl.
- Make the dressing either in a blender or shake together in a jar.
- Add all the ingredients to a bowl with about half the dressing. I like to start with half and then add more as needed, according to your preference. Any salad that is leftover will more than likely need a little more dressing added before serving the next day.
Notes
- Save the extra dressing to add to your leftover salad. Pasta can get dry as it sits.
- To make this higher in protein, use chickpea pasta or big protein pasta
- To make this lower fat, use turkey pepperoni and low fat cheese
- If you don’t want to make the homemade dressing, simply use your favorite Italian vinaigrette for the store.
Recipe Source: Adapted from this one.
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