Summer Rainbow Pasta Salad

Rainbow Summer Pasta Salad

Pasta - Buon Appetito (from Bulk Barn) 500g

Cook the pasta 13 mins - slightly underdone, you don't want fully cooked(or crunchy) or they will turn to mush while mixing salad. Drain cooked pasta, rinse pasta under cold water, drain again.

1/4 each of red, yellow, orange and green peppers diced

1 small zucchini, sliced thinly and diced

1 cup cherry tomatoes

2 mini cucumbers halved and chopped

1/4 cup red onion diced (I'd use 1/2 cup next time)

1 small jar of sundried tomatoes - I leave them in big pieces (I want their flavour, but I pick them out when I eat this salad)

Feta 200g- chopped up

Bocconcini 500g - chopped up (I'd use mozzarella cheese, cut into cubes next time.)

Dressing: rough measurements (I tasted as I mixed)

1/2 cup veg oil (next time use the oil from the sundried tomatoes. I would use less oil next time, a 1/3 cup maybe)

1/2 cup vinegar

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 whole green onion sliced thin

2 tsp pepper

2 tsp sugar

1 tbsp dried oregano

1 tbsp dried parsley

1 tbsp dried basil

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

Salt to taste

Mix dressing ingredients in bowl, let sit in bowl for a bit so the flavours mingle. 

Put pasta, veggies, cheeses in bowl and pour dressing over top, mix gently. Let sit over night in fridge. Taste. Now add more salt, pepper. And mix one last time, this is when I added in the cherry tomatoes. This is when I also added in 1/2 cup Zesty Italian dressing - I thought it needed an extra pop of flavour.

..or add whatever else you think it's lacking or just want more of.

Look at the colours of that pasta! Bummer that after they are cooked they lose a lot of the colour.

This makes a large amount of salad.

3.5 large deli containers

Rainbow bowl holds 2 large deli containers worth plus a couple extra spoonfuls.

This was also a hit at Mason's 3rs Birthday Party.