I think I could eat a whole recipe of this salad by myself! I just love the fresh vegetables and grated cheese with the zesty burst of the Italian dressing! You can easily cut this recipe in half too!!
1 (16 oz.) pkg. Penne Pasta
3-4 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 purple onion, sliced
1 (4 oz.) can sliced olives
1 green bell pepper, chopped
8 oz. bottle Italian dressing
1 (8 oz.) bag fresh grated parmesan cheese (or grate some fresh Parmesan yourself!)
Fill a large pot 3/4 full of water,(4-6 quarts) add about 1 tsp. salt and bring it to a boil. (I find that if you place the lid on the pot, the water comes to a boil a little faster especially at sea level.)
Add pasta, give it a little stir and bring back to a boil.
Start timing when the water returns to a boil. Cook pasta for 8-10 minutes...you want to start testing it by removing one and biting down on it... it needs to be chewy and not soft. when it gets to this point, take it off the heat and drain. Run cool water over it and let it completely cool.
Place cooled pasta in a bowl.
Add tomatoes, onion, bell pepper and olives to pasta and stir to blend.
Just before serving add dressing (you can add as much or as little dressing as you want..it's up to you!) Add cheese and gently toss to coat pasta well.
If you are taking this salad to share at a gathering, mix the pasta and vegetables together in a bowl but wait to add the dressing and cheese until just before you serve it.
I may or may not have eaten almost all of this salad...and it wasn't just this little bowl!
enjoy!!
© Nancy Rappleye 2011
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