Italian Balsamic Pasta Salad
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Balsamic pasta salad is delicious! Garlic infused tomatoes with tangy balsamic and nutty Parmesan cheese is a perfect combination.
My friend over at Barefeet in the Kitchen gave me a fabulous gift of a beautiful basket of tomatoes from her garden. I was so excited to eat them, that I went searching her blog for this fabulous Balsamic Tomato Salad with Trottole and Mozzarella that she had posted a few weeks ago. I was very excited to try it!!!
Table of Contents
Italian Balsamic Pasta Salad
So, I put a little Italian spin on this fantastic recipe. The salad and the tomatoes are delicious!!! The flavor of the garlic on the tomatoes, the tang of the balsamic and the nuttiness of the Parmesan cheese is a perfect combination. I also added salami to the final version and it is AMAZING!!! The salami gave it a feeling of a full meal adding a true meatiness to the dish.
Of course Mr. W turned his nose up at this dish, it does after all have a vegetable in it that has not been processed (although I think I am slowly wearing him down with my kryptonite) we will see first roasted red peppers, next could be ricotta cheese…. Em on the other hand loved the tomatoes, I couldn’t get her to eat anything else. Or should I say Em was so excited about the tomatoes, she pushed everything else aside.
I am eating my last serving of this as I write this post. I have really enjoyed this and have been mixing it up to turn it into comfort food at night. I cover it in grated Parmesan cheese and a pat or two of butter and heat it up in the microwave. OH MY!!! IT IS HEAVENLY! Mmmmmm.
Enjoy!
With love, from our simple kitchen to yours.
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Italian Balsamic Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 6 cups assorted small tomatoes, I used sunburst, campari, cherry and grape tomatoes (cut in half)
- 1/2 cup basil, chopped small
- 1/2 cup Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped small
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
- 3 garlic cloves, grated on a microplane
- 1 pound mini penne
- kosher salt, handful to season pasta water
- 1/4 cup olive oil, extra virgin
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 6 ounces black olives, sliced
- 8 ounces mozarella cheese, diced
- 4 ounces hard salami sliced thin, chopped to desired size
- fresh Parmesan grated or shaved, for each dish
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine tomatoes, basil, parsley, salt, pepper and garlic. Allow to sit and macerate for several hours, creating a delicious marinade from the ingredients and the tomato juices.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta and return to the pot. Add olive oil to pasta and stir. Add the tomato mixture, olives balsamic vinegar and salami and toss to coat thoroughly.
- Before serving mix in the mozzarella cheese and toss to coat. As you plate each dish, add shaved or grated Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
Originally Published July 25, 2011
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We’re Donna and Chad, the dream team behind The Slow Roasted Italian. Our focus is on taking complicated OUT of the kitchen. Life is busy enough, making meals should be fast and easy, to help make your life as simple as possible. Read More >>
Yummmmy!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a great summer dish. You can get full without that "heavy" feeling of eating pasta in the summer.
I'm so glad you enjoyed them. I'll have more for you tomorrow night. My little one did the same thing with the tomatoes. He really liked them!
Looks great! Definitely the perfect summer meal. And nothing beats fresh tomatoes from the garden!
I love that you added salami to the pasta salad. Something I have never done but it sounds incredible! Great pictures too!
You can send me your hubby's portion 🙂
This is my kind of pasta! Beautiful to look at as it sounds to eat!! and so great for a summer meal.
This sounds just amazing, what a great way to use the bountiful harvest of tomatoes that is hitting right now!
I need a friend like that! The pasta salad looks delicious. 🙂
Great looking pasta salad, love it with the salami cheese and olives. Those tomatoes look fabulous!
Home grown tomatoes are the best! This pasta salad looks lovely.
I make a similar pasta recipe…and the hubby isn't so fond of it. Just more for me 🙂 This looks fantastic…and don't you just love the gift of juicy garden tomatoes???
PS…I hope you'll post a photo when you make your Death by Chocolate! SO glad to find another friend who has made this!!!
Yum, this is my favorite kind of summer meal. I like to make plenty because the leftovers just get better. The addition of salami sounds delish.
I am really convinced that this pasta is really great aside that the recipe comes from your friend barefeet in the kitchen which I know she cooks great food and you put some twist on the recipe…I wish that I am your neighbor to taste that awesome pasta =)
Erecipe
I have been craving an Italian pasta salad since it is so hot! Thanks for sharing this!!!
mmm mmm…that looks quite yummy!
How yummy! The pasta looks fantastic!
This recipe was such a delicious filling meal, that still felt light! I love pasta salads and this is one of my favorite versions of it to date.