Caprese Pasta Salad

Today’s Sunday Funday is all about the pasta salad.  I love cold pasta salads in the summer so this is perfect!

For this theme, I wanted to keep things simple, so I created a simple caprese pasta salad.  Caprese is typically a salad of fresh mozzarella, basil, and tomatoes.

I used whole wheat pasta which I think elevates this one to main dish or hearty side dish status. 

Because of the time of year, I had to rely on dried basil for this salad (my baby basil just isn’t ready for a big harvest yet), but it still totally worked - with just a little fresh basil as a garnish! I also used roasted tomatoes in this dish, because try as I might I still don't like raw tomatoes (especially cherry tomatoes) in salads. However, roasted tamed them down perfectly for my tastes!

Sunday Funday

Pasta Salads

• Sneha's Recipe: Vegan Italian Pasta Salad With Basil Dressing 
• Amy's Cooking Adventures: Caprese Pasta Salad 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Couscous Salad 
• Palatable Pastime: Pineapple and Butternut Macaroni Salad 
• Karen's Kitchen Stories: Chinese Egg Noodle Salad with Pork 
• Mayuri's Jikoni: Tropical Pasta Salad 
• Cook with Renu: Vegetable Orzo Pasta Salad

Caprese Pasta Salad

Adapted from Foodie Crush

Salad

½ pound cooked whole wheat rotini

1 tablespoon butter

3 tablespoons rice vinegar (or white balsamic)

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons dried basil

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

Salt & pepper, to taste

¼ cup parmesan cheese

4 ounces mozzarella pearls

Roasted grape tomatoes (see below)

Fresh basil, to garnish

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

½ pint grape tomatoes, cut in half

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

Salt

Pepper

To roast the tomatoes, preheat to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet.  Toss the tomatoes with olive oil, balsamic, salt, & pepper.  Roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until they are very soft, turning a few times during cooking.  Set aside until cool.

Meanwhile, boil the pasta.  Drain and stir in the butter to keep the noodles from sticking.  Allow to cool.

Place the vinegar, olive oil, basil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a blender and blend to combine (alternately whisk).  Pour the dressing over the cooled pasta and stir to mix.  Stir in the tomatoes, parmesan, and mozzarella.  Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

Stir, garnish with fresh basil and serve.