Caprese Pasta Salad -

Caprese Pasta Salad

Fresh, summery and delicious this Caprese Pasta Salad has all the flavours of the classic salad. With juicy cherry tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and a balsamic dressing this pasta dish is so easy to make and is ready in under 20 minutes!

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine Fusion, Italian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 10

Total Time 20

Servings

Calories 441kcal

Author Michelle Alston

Ingredients

For the pasta salad

350 g pasta (5 ½ cups) farfalle (pasta bows) work really well
300 g cherry tomatoes (1 ½ cups) cut in half
30 g fresh basil (1 ½ cups) roughly chopped
225 g mozzarella pearls ( 1 x 8oz pack) you can cut these in half or leave them whole
½ small red onion thinly sliced
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper

For the dressing

80 ml extra virgin olive oil (⅓ of a cup)
2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
½ tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove of garlic minced
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper

Instructions

Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
While the pasta is cooking, slice the red onion, cut the tomatoes in half and chop the basil.
Then make the dressing. Add the extra virgin olive oil to a jug or bowl, whisk in the balsamic vinegar. Finally whisk in the oregano, garlic, salt and pepper.
Set aside until the pasta is ready.
Once the pasta is cooked, drain it, then run it under the cold tap.
Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl or mixing bowl. Add the tomatoes, mozzarella, red onion and basil.
Pour in the dressing, season with salt and pepper then toss carefully.
You can serve immediately or you can leave it to chill in the fridge for 30 minutes and then serve.

Notes

Pasta - Farfalle works best for this pasta salad, you could also use penne or fusilli. Make sure and cook the pasta until it is al dense, you don't want a mushy pasta salad. Once drained I rinse pasta in cold water to stop it from cooking further and to cool out down.
Basil - use fresh basil always for this recipe. Dried basil just won't work.
Mozzarella - I use mozzarella pearls for this recipe, you should find them in most large supermarkets. If you can't find then you can use regular fresh mozzarella cut it into small chunks.
Dressing - I always add all of the dressing to this pasta salad. I recommend leaving it to sit for a few minutes before you serve it so the pasta can soak up the dressing. You can also refrigerate this for 30 minutes or more which is really good too.
Add-ins - We have had this with a number of different add-ins, sliced black or kalamata olives, toasted pine nuts or sun-dried tomatoes all work really well.
Serving size - this recipe makes enough for 6 people for lunch or enough for 4 if served for dinner.
Freezing/storing/ making ahead - I don't recommend freezing this dish. You can store any leftovers in the fridge, use within a day for best results. You can make the dressing a couple of days ahead, the pasta salad itself can be made the day before but add the basil just before serving.
Nutritional Information - All nutritional information is approximate and is calculated using an online nutrition tool. Information can vary depending on various factors but I have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
Measurements - I weigh all my ingredients using an electric scale, all measurements are metric. Cup measurements are approximate.

Nutrition