Description
Grab summer's finest produce and whip up this no-fuss, crowd-pleasing pasta salad smothered in best homemade Italian dressing! Fresh mozzarella and basil take it over the top. Bring it to potlucks or serve it for a simple weeknight dinner with grilled chicken, burgers, or shrimp!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 16oz bowtie pasta
- 3 cups broccoli florets, chopped into small pieces*
- 1 medium zucchini, diced
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/3 cup banana peppers, chopped
- 1 batch Italian dressing
- 1 cup fresh mozzarella cheese, chopped (or try cheddar/provolone cubes!)
- 1/3 cup fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add pasta and cook according to package directions. Meanwhile, chop broccoli. In the last two minutes of cooking, add the broccoli.
- Drain and give pasta and broccoli a rinse in cold water.
- Chop remaining veggies (we're not cooking the zucchini!), cheese, and basil. Make dressing.
- Place cooked pasta in a large mixing bowl. Add chopped veggies, cheese, basil, and dressing. Toss to combine. Sometimes I add a good handful of grated Parmesan, too. Taste, season if needed, and serve room temp or cold.
- I think this salad tastes best the day of but you can easily refrigerate any leftovers for up to 3 days.
Notes
*If you don't love broccoli, you can omit and sub 1-2 diced bell peppers (no need to cook).