Summer has arrived and seems to stay for a bit. Summertime is Picnic-time and in this spirit I prepared an Italian pasta salad last Saturday. I love picnicking. Last weekend, when we organised an excursion to the north of the country – and yes, even in a tiny country like Luxembourg we plan our excursions to the north of the country – I had this pasta salad in mind I ate around 5 years ago. This seems to happen to me more and more. I feel like getting old. Every time I have an idea, I have childhood or teenage memories coming along, and then I think – well you’re not that old.
Back to the pasta salad. I was once invited to a barbecue party, and someone, I don’t even remember who, prepared that brilliant Italian pasta salad. What I most remember was the combination of dried tomatoes, basil and mozzarella and of course the coppa. Usually I am a huge fan of salad dressings, but for this salad, I preferred to only use best quality olive oil. I always have a good bottle of olive oil in my cupboard. Sometimes I would just dip my fresh baguette into some olive oil and enjoy it as one served me a delicious meal.
With some of my friends we are currently planning another picnic session in the upcoming weeks. My decision has already been taken. I will bring the pasta salad. Even if most of my friends will rather expect me to bring a nice desert, my preference is definitely lying in bringing this salad. I hope this won’t be too much of a disappointment.
Well, from our side, my lovely kitchen assistant and myself were happy about the result but we were not the only ones. I mean I am usually preparing things that I like, but it’s difficult to judge if it’s a real success. So I always seek feedback. This time, I offered 4 portions to my parents and after having a first try, my mother invited the neighbors over for lunch. According to their comments, they would like to be invited again, for the same salad. I think – this is a satisfying statement.
Italian Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 350 g pasta of your choice
- 300 g cherry tomatoes
- 1 red onion large
- 12 dried tomatoes
- 5 slices coppa
- 120 g mini mozzarella balls
- 50 g Parmesan
- 25 g rocket salad
- basil
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Boil the pasta al dente.
- Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them into quarters.
- Peel and cut the onion into little cubes, cut the coppa and the dried tomatoes into thin slices.
- Then wash the rocket & the basil leaves.
- Once your pasta is al dente, let it cool down. If you want to fasten the process just pour cold water on it.
- Now you can add all the ingredients into a large bowl.
- Add the 4 tbsp of olive oil and the shavings of the Parmesan cheese.
- Season with salt and pepper according to your needs.
- Enjoy!!!
DID YOU MAKE THE RECIPE?
Share your creations and tag me @passionmeetscreativity #passionmeetscreativity. I can’t wait to see what you’ve made!
