Make Ahead Italian Pasta Salad
This pasta salad is flavorful and easy to throw together! It includes three types of cheese, pepperoni or salami, veggies, and a quick dressing. Make this tasty dish ahead of time so the flavors continue to build. Enjoy as an entree or side!
Servings: 12 (1 cup) servings
Ingredients
- 1 pound rotini or elbow pasta can use gluten-free pasta if you prefer
- 1 cup cucumber diced
- 3 ounces pepperoni or salami diced, about 1 cup
- ½ cup julienne cut sun-dried tomatoes drained and chopped
- ½ cup feta cheese crumbles
- 8 ounces mozzarella pearls
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup fresh parsley chopped
Italian Dressing
- 1 cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup red or white wine vinegar
- 1½ teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Add all dressing ingredients to a jar, put the lid on, and shake until everything is combined.
- Cook your pasta per package directions.
- Drain water and then stir in pepperoni, cucumber, sun-dried tomatoes, feta, mozzarella, parmesan, and parsley.
- Pour the dressing on top of your pasta and stir.
- Refrigerate the finished pasta until you're ready to serve. It's even better after it's had time for all your flavors to mix so I like to make mine 8 to 12 hours before we're planning to eat. When you're ready to serve give it a good stir so the dressing isn't settled on the bottom.
Notes
This dressing was specifically tested with extra spices and herbs to flavor this pasta salad. If you're wanting to use it on a traditional salad I recommend sticking with my Easy Homemade Italian Dressing instead.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 426kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 595mg | Potassium: 340mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 379IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 202mg | Iron: 2mg