September 20, 2020

Italian Style Pasta Salad

Name: Italian Style Pasta Salad
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 12 oz. box of tri-color rotini (see cooking directions below); 1 10 oz. bag frozen broccoli florets; 20 slices organic turkey pepperoni, sliced into quarters; 2 oz. cheddar cheese, cubed; 1/8. cup grated Parmesan cheese; 1 pint cherry tomatoes; 1 small can sliced black olives; 1 package Good Seasons Italian Seasons prepared with less oil

Jump to recipe

Today I am going to introduce you to my family’s version of pasta salad. I have dubbed it Italian Style Pasta Salad mostly because of the ingredients. It is a family favorite and is in my fridge ALL the time over the summer. This dish is so easy to put together and lasts as a side dish for days. So all we have to do is grill some meat, add a veggie and dinner is made.

And don’t save this recipe just for summer BBQ’s. I make this year round, my kids love to take it for lunch. It is a healthy alternative to PB&J. Plus we will get several days of lunches out of this recipe. Even though it is a little more prep on the front end, I just fill containers for the rest of the week for grab and go lunches.

Speaking of grab and go lunches, I love these metal containers for my kids lunches. I try to avoid plastic as much as possible, if I can’t find an alternative I make sure I purchase BPA free from a name I trust. We have used these snack containers for years. I bought a couple sets and fill them at the beginning of the week with pretzels, goldfish, grapes, etc. These are an environmentally friendly alternative to baggies and are cheaper than purchasing pre-packaged snack packs.

My last little plug for alternatives is these adorable daily water bottles. These have been in my refrigerator since my now teenagers were toddlers. When they were little I felt like I spent all day filling and washing sippie cups, these were a huge help. These come in 2 sizes, 10 oz. and 16 oz. My kids have graduated to the 16 oz. bottles. But we still have the 10 oz. bottles for my younger nieces and nephews. They always want to use one of these bottles when they come to visit. And for the littles I use the sports lid toppers so there are no accidents with the bottles.

I have been trying to move away from plastic food storage all together, both in our kitchen and the kids lunches. It isn’t always easy for storing larger things, but we are always trying. If you are interested in changing some of your storage containers too, I LOVE these glass food containers, there is a good variety of sizes. Plus I am a sucker for anything teal.

Ingredients

Enough about food storage. Let’s talk about Italian Style Pasta Salad. We use the Barilla brand tri-color rotini. But you can use whatever pasta you like. We will mix in one prepared (use the less oil directions) packet Good Seasons Italian dressing, 20 slices of turkey pepperoni, 2 oz. reduced fat cheddar cheese, 1 10 oz. frozen bag of organic broccoli florets, 1/8 c. grated Parmesan cheese, 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, and 1 small can of sliced black olives.

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. I like to cook mine about 2 minutes less than the directions. The dressing will make the pasta a little soggy, so to avoid this, I under cook the pasta a bit. When there are 2 minutes left to cook the pasta, add a 10 oz. bag of organic frozen broccoli florets to the pot. You can cook the broccoli another way if you prefer, I do this to avoid dirtying more dishes.

While the pasta is cooking you can prep the rest of the ingredients. To make the Good Seasons dressing, I use the less fat directions. I swap the amount of oil and water, using 3 T. of oil and 1.5 cups of water. Shake the dressing well and let is sit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Next cut 2 oz. of reduced fat cheddar cheese into small chunks. Take about 20 pieces of the turkey pepperoni and cut into quarters. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half.

When the pasta and broccoli are done cooking, use a strainer to drain the water. Then run the strainer under cold water to stop the pasta and broccoli from cooking further. I know rinsing the pasta is frowned upon, but this is the only time I suggest rinsing the pasta. Place the strainer on top of the pot to let the excess water run out for a couple minutes.

You will need a large bowl for mixing this all together. You can store in a smaller bowl, but for mixing purposes, make sure you have a nice big bowl. Place the pasta and broccoli in the bowl. Add all the ingredients except dressing. Put about half the dressing over the top. Mix gently, making sure to incorporate everything well. Then I do a taste test, to see if I have enough dressing. Half the cruet is usually enough but sometimes I add a little more right away.

Now you can transfer to a smaller bowl with a tight fitting lid or plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for at least 4 hours to let all the flavors come together.

When it is time to serve, give the pasta salad a quick mix. If it seems dry, which tends to happen because the pasta absorbs some of the dressing, add about 1/8-1/4 cup dressing. Give it a good mix again and then you are ready to serve.

If you are going to package individually like I do for my kids lunches, I just top the salad with a little dressing in the morning while packing lunches. Then I give it a good shake to incorporate everything.

This recipe is so easy and you can buy almost all the ingredients ahead of time to make it when you want. I have made this without the tomatoes when I don’t have them in the house and it comes out just as delicious.

You can also experiment with different ingredients adding your favorites or removing what you don’t like. Some other ideas are crumbled turkey bacon, diced roasted red peppers, chopped sundried tomatoes, swap the cheddar for mozzarella, add some cooked or fresh baby spinach, substitute the Parmesan for feta…the possibilities are really endless.

Some of our favorite main dishes to serve our Italian Style Pasta Salad are grilled lemon garlic chicken, pulled pork, hamburgers, hot dogs, and if you are looking for something new try my recipe for Hawaiian Chicken Wraps.

Leave me some of your variations or what you served with it in the comments below.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

XO,