the best easy italian pasta salad

Super easy Italian Pasta Salad – with pasta, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, spicy salami, pepperoncini, olives, and easy Italian dressing. DANGEROUSLY GOOD.

A stupidly easy Italian pasta salad with rotini, juicy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, red onion, salami, olives, herbs, and a drench of quick homemade Italian dressing.

Good, spicy salami. Yummy cheeses. Tomatoes or some other friendly non-threatening vegetable. Greens of some sort – even if it’s just fresh parsley. Olives and red onions and pepperoncini.

Also, we need pasta with good solid texture and shape to absorb all the sauce. I like rotini. (Also, DeLallo! It’s our favorite. The semi-rough texture is unrivaled for sauce-soakage. I get mine at Target or Cub Foods.)

This is a weeknight’s dream meal.Stop at the store on the way home and pick up some good salami and cheese, some olives, and a few fresh herbs. Cook up some pasta, toss it all together, and voila. Cold pasta salad + a glass of rose for dinner, and colder pasta salad as leftovers for lunch all week.

THE BEST EASY ITALIAN PASTA SALAD

Prep Time : 30 mins 

Cook Time : 5 minutes

Yield : 10+ – this yields more than 15 cups 1x

INGREDIENTS 

pasta salad essentials:

• 1 pound uncooked pasta – I like rotini!
• 3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese balls, cut in half
• 1 lb. salami or summer sausage, cut into cubes
• 3/4 cup kalamata olives, sliced
• 3/4 cup pepperoncini (optional, but do it)
• 1/2 cup sliced red onion
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

italian pasta salad dressing:

• 1 1/2 cups olive oil
• 1/4 cup white vinegar (white vinegar or red wine vinegar work)
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons coarse sea salt (yes, tablespoons – see notes!)
• 2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons each dry oregano and dry basil
• black pepper to taste
• fresh herbs if you want! sometimes I add fresh parsley, basil, or chives.

INSTRCUTIONS

Get the full instruction @pinchofyum.com

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