Antipasto Pasta Salad
Antipasto favorites are combined with al dente short noodles and tossed with a flavorful Italian dressing. The resulting savory, hearty pasta salad is highly customizable and doubles as a main course.
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Servings: 8
Equipment
- 1 pasta pot with strainer OR
- 1 soup pot and a colander
- chef's knife and cutting board
Ingredients
Pasta
- 16 oz short noodle pasta
Antipasto
- 1 cup mozzarella pearl or balls
- 1 cup Italian hard salami (cut in bite sized pieces)
- ½ cup mortadella or garlic bologna, cut into strips
- 1 cup mini tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup preserved, marinated artichoke hearts, cut into small pieces
- 2 tablespoon capers
- 2 tablespoon fresh herbs, chopped - basil, Italian oregano, chives, summer savory
Dressing
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon red or white wine vinegar, or balsamic
- 2 teaspoon dried Italian oregano
- ½ tsp kosher salt, or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
Instructions
- Cook the short noodle pasta according to the package instructions to al dente texture. Drain the cooked pasta in the colander and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and remove excess starch from the surface.
- While the pasta is cooking mix the ingredients for the dressing and set it aside. Cut, dice, slice or otherwise prepare those antipasto ingredients that require it.
- Toss the cooled down pasta, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella pearls with the dressing - they need to be generously coated in it and absorb most of the flavors.
- Add all the other antipasto ingredients you have to the bowl.
- Mix to combine. Season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste and serve.
Notes
We suggest that you cook an entire 16 oz package of short noodle pasta for making one batch of this pasta salad.
Note that the listed antipasto ingredients follow the version of the salad shown in the pictures of this post. The actual selection of antipasto ingredients is entirely up to you, as dictated by your personal preferences. Add as much of each ingredient as you see fit.
Calories and nutrition facts for antipasto pasta salad cannot be calculated with precision due to the large degree of variance introduced by the possible ingredients and in what quantity they are used. We suggest that you enjoy the dish and do not focus on the numeric values of what you are consuming.
