A delicious pasta salad with all the best flavors of summer. You’ll love the simple homemade dressing, chunks of mozzarella, and garden-fresh veggies.
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Table of contents
❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe
- It’s easy to make. The dressing is the hardest part, and that takes all of five minutes.
- Requires simple ingredients
- Make it ahead of time! Chilling in the fridge for a few hours really allows the flavors to come together
🧂 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You’ll find the full measurements and instructions in the printable recipe at the bottom of the page.
You’ll need the following for this yummy pasta salad:
- olive oil
- garlic powder
- oregano
- basil
- pepper
- salt
- onion powder
- Dijon mustard
- white wine vinegar
- diced cucumber
- diced tomatoes
- diced mozzarella
- cooked penne pasta
- fresh parsley
🥣 Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
🍴Instructions
Step One: Make the dressing
In a small mixing bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Whisk in the vinegar until smooth.
Step Two: Add everything else
Combine the cooked pasta with the dressing in a large mixing bowl and add the cucumber, tomato, and mozzarella. Cover and refrigerate the pasta salad for at least two hours before serving.
Step three: Chill and serve
Remove from the fridge and add the fresh parsley. Stir again to combine.
🥫 Storage instructions
The pasta salad can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
🔍 FAQs
Yes, you can add any type of chopped vegetable you like to this pasta salad. Some good additions include bell peppers, sweet corn, and roasted or sautéed mushrooms.
You can substitute white wine vinegar with any type of mild or acidic vinegar, such as rice vinegar or red wine vinegar.
👩🏻🍳 Expert tips
- The pasta salad may seem to have too much dressing at first, but as it chills in the fridge, it will absorb some of it.
- You can use any type of pasta you like for this recipe.
- Add the parsley just before serving.
📘 Serve It With
- Having a warm-weather party? Everyone will love this patriotic poke cake; also super easy and made ahead of time!
- We like to prepare a side dish in the morning if we’re making something more labor-intensive, like buttermilk fried chicken for dinner.
- Blackberry lemonade is another seasonal recipe perfect for a potluck.
📖 Here’s the recipe
Cucumber Tomato Pasta Salad
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
Ingredients
- ¾ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 2 teaspoons basil
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ⅔ cup white wine vinegar
- 1 large diced cucumber
- 5 medium diced tomatoes
- 8 ounces diced mozzarella
- half box cooked penne pasta 8 ounces
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
Instructions
- Make the dressing. Combine the olive oil, garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, onion powder, and Dijon dressing in a small bowl. Add the vinegar while whisking until well-combined.
- Add the other ingredients and chill. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked pasta with the dressing and add the cucumber, tomato, and mozzarella. Cover the pasta salad and chill in the fridge for at least two hours.
- Serve. Remove from the fridge and add the fresh parsley. Stir again to combine.
Nutrition
Easy to make, and such a light, refreshing taste! I think this is going to be my new go-to recipe for summer salad. Yum!!!
thank you catherine, so happy you enjoyed it! 🙂