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Antipasto Pasta Salad with Herby Parmesan Vinaigrette. If you’re searching for a delicious pasta salad, look no further. This is the perfect quick fix salad that’s mayo-free, almost no-cook, comes together in minutes, and is great for warm weather picnics and BBQ’s. Grab your favorite pasta, whisk up an herby parmesan vinaigrette, toss with hot pasta, roasted peppers, artichokes, tomatoes, spicy salami, fresh mozzarella…and done. So full of flavor and color. This could not be easier to pull off. Trust me, this will be everyone’s new favorite antipasto pasta salad recipe…a serious upgrade from the classic.
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There’s salad and then there’s pasta salad. To be honest I’m not sure I get why it’s called pasta salad. But since it’s a salad, then it must be health food, and that for sure works in my book.
In all seriousness, ever since I was a kid I’ve always loved a good bowl of pasta salad. My dad would make the simplest pasta salad with raw broccoli, fresh basil, olive oil, and cubed cheddar cheese. His secret was in tossing the hot pasta with the broccoli, basil, and cheese. This causes the cheese to slightly melt and softens the broccoli and basil. It really infuses the flavor. Oh, and the melty cheese is everything. I loved every single bite of my dad’s 5 ingredient pasta salad. I was also that weird kid that would help him chop the broccoli up. For every broccoli floret that went into the bowl, one went into my mouth…I’ve always loved my vegetables.
I guess the kitchen’s kind of been my place for most of my life. I didn’t even realize it until writing this, but I would help my dad cook when I was way little. He’d have me pick fresh basil and tomatoes from his garden, cube the cheddar, and chop veggies. Wow, I really did start young!
Anyway, I’ve always loved pasta salad. And with Mother’s Day this coming weekend, and Memorial day soon to follow, that means pasta salad season is here, and I’m all for it. What’s awesome about pasta salad is that it can be made completely in advance. It’s even delicious when served warm or cold, making it perfect for picnics and BBQ’s.
I’ve shared a couple of pasta salads in the past, but today’s is extra special, and a little different from my previous versions.
Say hello to the antipasto pasta salad. Think of your favorite antipasto platter, add pasta, plus an herby parmesan vinaigrette that’s sweet, tangy, and so good. In my opinion, this is a step up from the platter version, because let’s be honest, everything is made better with pasta and cheese.
Here are the details.
Step one is to cook your pasta. I like to use a fun short cut pasta. Something like a penne, farfalle, or rotini pasta, but any short cut pasta works really well.
Step two is to make the vinaigrette. It’s a sweet and tangy mix of olive oil, champagne vinegar (one of my favorite ingredients right now), shallots, fresh thyme, lemon, and parmesan.
I like to whisk up the vinaigrette in a large bowl that I plan to serve the salad in. This will save you a dish to clean, and honestly, it just makes sense to do it this way.
Step three is tossing the HOT pasta with the vinaigrette. Using hot pasta breaks down the raw shallot and infuses the vinaigrette with a tangy, herby flavor. Go with me on this, use hot pasta. It’s the key to a really good, mayo-free, pasta salad.
Step four, adding in all the classic antipasto ingredients: roasted peppers, artichokes, tomatoes, spicy salami, fresh mozzarella or buffalo mozzarella, and plenty of fresh basil.
And that’s it. Crazy simple, but crazy good, and filled with so much color too!
Personally, I love enjoying this salad warm. But of course, it’s delicious served both right out of the fridge or at room temperature. I will say that if you let the salad sit for a day, it develops a more intense “marinated” flavor, which is particularly delicious. Just be sure to store in an airtight container.
Either way, it’s going to be good and loved by all. I’m already excited to serve this all summer long. I might even make it again for Sunday’s Mother’s Day dinner. Bonus? Any leftovers will make a killer Monday lunch…very into that.
PS. If you’re looking for a pasta salad option with beans, try this sun-dried, white bean, and goat cheese pasta salad.
Lastly, if you make this Antipasto Pasta Salad with Herby Parmesan Vinaigrette, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Antipasto Pasta Salad with Herby Parmesan Vinaigrette.
Ingredients
- 1 pound short cut pasta
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup champagne or red wine vinegar
- 1 small shallot, grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts, finely chopped, (optional)
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 roasted red bell peppers, sliced
- 1 jar (14 ounce) marinated artichoke hearts, drained
- 1/2 cup oil packed sun-dried tomatoes oil, drained and chopped
- 4 ounces spicy salami, thinly sliced
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella or buffalo mozzarella, torn
- 1-2 cups baby arugula
Instructions
- 1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta to al dente, according to package directions. Drain.2. Meanwhile, to a large serving bowl, add olive oil, vinegar, the shallot, thyme, lemon zest, parmesan, pine nuts (if using), and a pinch each of crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Add half the basil and the hot pasta and toss vigorously to combine. 3. Add the bell peppers, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, salami, mozzarella, and half the arugula, tossing to combine. At this point, the salad can be served warm (my preference) or cooled and kept in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. 4. To serve, bring the pasta to room temp. Top with the remaining arugula and basil. Season with freshly cracked pepper and salt. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Beautiful. A must ♥️
Thank you so much Jen! xTieghan
Delicious salad! I made some modifications: I caramelized the bell pepper strips with some onions and added those to the salad. I used half pound of pasta and chilled overnight in fridge before assembling salad next day. I used 1/4 pound sopresatta. Served over additional arugula So good! Thank you for another wonderful recipe!!
Thank you Teresa!! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
made this for a work potluck and everyone loved it! a couple people asked me if I bought it, they thought it was so good. definitely going to make again!
That is so great! Thank you for trying this recipe Alex! xTieghan
Delicious flavors, and easy to toss together! Definitely making again.
Thank you so much Kimberly! xTieghan
I have made this twice & am making it again today for a cookout tomorrow. It’s so good & my family & friends love it.
I am so glad you all love this recipe! Thank you so much Luanne! xTieghan
Hello! Very excited to try this recipe. Do you recommend tossing the arugula into the salad immediately before serving or will the arugula be okay mixed into the salad for a couple of hours?
Also, do you have a particular brand of canned artichokes and roasted peppers that you recommend?
Hi there! The arugula is fine to mix in up to 3-4 hours ahead. I like to us DeLallo artichokes and red pepper usually. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Does this really only stay good for 1-2 days in the fridge?? What spoils in it so it doesn’t keep longer??
Hi Lorri, you can keep the salad in the fridge for as long as you feel comfortable. That is totally up to you! Nothing should spoil except the cheese. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Made this for a Memorial Day BBQ. It was fantastic. It is really a make ahead recipe. The longer it sits, the better the flavor gets. I used burrata which seemed to dry it out just a bit, so I drizzled a little of the oil from the sun dried tomato jar. Next time I will use the buffalo motz, which would definitely be a better texture for this salad. Never dreamed I would say anything negative about burrata (I so love it), but it wasn’t right for this particular recipe. This is a make again and again and again recipe. Really pretty too!
Thank you so much Kristin! xTieghan
Something didn’t work with the dressing. It was too sour. Not sure if it was from the vinegar or the lemon. If I make this again I’ll add less vinegar and maybe skip the lemon zest.
I liked the combo of the other ingredients though.
Hi Emily! Did you make the recipe as written? Please let me know if you have any questions after making this again! xTieghan
Gorgeous pasta salad, I love this recipe for the long weekend!
Thank you Laura! xTieghan
do you roast the red peppers yourself? or buy them jarred?
I Typically roast the peppers over an open flame on my gos cooktop, but jarred are really great too! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Fantastic and great for this time of year, a decent number of ingredients, but most I had on hand and still super simple to make and throw together!!
So great! Thank you so much Megan! xTieghan
This salad looks like a flavor bomb!! I love the sound of that Parmesan vinaigrette 🙂
Thank you!! xTieghan
what a delicious looking salad!!
Thank you Ruth! xTieghan
Loooove a good pasta salad. This looks so easy and delicious.
Thank you! xTieghan