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I love to serve pasta salads during the hotter summer months. They don’t heat the house up and they can be prepared ahead of time and eaten cold. Most pasta salads usually contain a salad dressing, but instead olive oil and balsamic vinegar are used as the dressing for the pasta. It creates a bruschetta flavor combined with cherry tomatoes and basil leaves. I did not use a gluten-free pasta, but if you want to make this salad gluten-free then the only ingredient that you need to replace is to use a gluten-free based pasta. This salad can be served as a cold summer side dish, or serve it at a summer barbecue or potluck.
I chose to use bow tie shaped pasta for this salad, although any small shaped pasta will work for this. Cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain and rinse the pasta with cold water to stop the cooking process. To give the pasta the traditional bruschetta flavor, cherry tomatoes, sliced red onion and chopped fresh basil leaves are added to the pasta. For the balsamic dressing, olive oil and balsamic vinegar and mixed together in a small bowl. Evenly drizzle the dressing over the pasta, cover and keep refrigerated for at least 2 hours until ready to serve. This pasta will stay good in refrigerator for up to one week.
Bruschetta Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 16 oz. bow tie pasta
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1 bunch fresh basil leaves, chopped
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions, drain. Place pasta into a large bowl and mix with the cherry tomatoes, red onion, and basil leaves.
- In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Drizzle dressing evenly over the pasta. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.