Summertime Italian Pasta Salad
One of the most common lunches we had growing up was pasta salad. There was no set recipe. It simply consisted of whatever veggies we had on hand, dressing, maybe some cheese and/or meat, always a bit of lettuce (which I hated at the time), and pasta (obviously). Because this is how I still make my pasta salads, I've never felt the need to write out an actual recipe (also, because the recipe would read something like "Take everything you have in your fridge and toss it in a bowl with some pasta."). I lie. I did write down one pasta recipe, for this healthy deli-style pasta salad. It was so good that I knew it needed to be replicated and that was only possible with a recipe. But all other 27,895 pasta salads I've made in my lifetime are pretty much a one time deal. Until I made this salad. It's kind of like the pasta salads I'm used to making where everything gets thrown into a bowl, except the things I threw into the bowl this time were so good, that like my deli pasta salad, it just had to be written down.
SUMMERTIME ITALIAN PASTA SALAD
INGREDIENTS
- Pasta, cooked al dente (I used half a box)
- Prosciutto (I used 4 slices)
- Cherry Tomatoes (about 1/2 cup)
- Olives (about 1/2 cup)
- Radishes (about 3-4, sliced)
- Basil (a handful, shredded)
- Arugula (a large handful)
- Parmesan (about 1/4 cup, grated)
- Truffle cheese (optional; I used about 1/3 cup of mini cubes)
- Olive oil (a generous drizzle)
- Salt & pepper (to taste)
INSTRUCTIONS
Toss all ingredients together in a large serving bowl. Drizzle generously with olive oil and toss with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or store in the fridge for up to 2 days in a tightly sealed container.
NOTES
I put the amounts I used in parentheses, but please keep in mind all of these ingredients are completely adjustable, based on taste preference as well as what you have on hand. Feel free to leave anything out and/or add anything else in. I think this would taste great with some roasted corn or cauliflower as well as goat cheese.
