Antipasto Pasta Salad

I started this blog late in the summer last year, so a lot of you may not know that I am obsessed with pasta salad, especially in the warm weather. I would eat it for lunch, snack, and dinner if I could (and sometimes I do!). There are just so many different variations, and it's the perfect dish to take to almost any get-together.

I have so many recipes in my files for new pasta salads to try, but sometimes the best ones just come out of what I have leftover in the refrigerator. I had everything but the olives for this one, and it turned out really delicious. You will see that I used shredded mozzarella cheese instead of cubes, because I have found that when I use mozzarella cubes, especially in something like pasta salad where it needs to sit and chill before serving, the cheese becomes mushy and loses it shape.

As with all pasta salads, adjust the amounts of the ingredients to your tastes, and the amount of dressing you use is subjective, depending on how you like it!

Antipasto Pasta Salad

from Colleen's Kitchen

makes about 4 servings

8 ounces rotini pasta

2 ounces pepperoni, sliced and quartered

4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

2.25 ounce can sliced black olives, drained

6 ounces roasted red peppers, drained and chopped

4 ounces sun-dried tomato dressing, plus more to taste

grated Parmesan cheese, to taste

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil, add rotini and cook until al dente 8-9 minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water. Add back to pasta pot.

Add remaining ingredients except Parmesan cheese, toss gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate 4-24 hours. Before serving, season to taste with Parmesan and more dressing if needed.