This Italian Pasta Salad is bursting with color and flavor. Tri-color noodles, creamy cheese, and vibrant veggies tossed in tangy Italian dressing makes this perfect for summer picnics and barbecues!
Italian Pasta Salad Recipe
This Italian Pasta Salad Recipe is full of flavor, pops of summer color and is the perfect side dish for all your summertime barbecues, picnics, family reunions or camp-outs. Our cousin, Jill, first introduced us to this pasta salad when she made it for one of our big family reunions. I’m so glad she let me steal her recipe and I always think of her when I make it. It’s versatile enough that you can double or triple the recipe depending on how many hungry mouths you need to feed. Whether you’re in need of a hearty side dish or a simple summer supper, try this pasta salad recipe; it’s a winner!
Additions or Substitutions for this Recipe
What I love about this Italian Summer Pasta Salad is that you can customize it to include your favorite ingredients. Add or subtract any ingredients you like! You can use any type of pasta noodles you have on hand. We love the tri-color spiral pasta because it gives extra color to the dish, but you could use macaroni, penne, ziti, anything you like. Some of our favorites that we like to include are:
- artichoke hearts
- diced tomatoes
- sun-dried tomatoes
- black olives
- Kalamata olives
- cubed mozzarella cheese
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- pepperoni
- salami
- red onion
- green or red peppers
- diced avocado
- baby corn
- broccoli
- seasoned chicken
More Favorite Summer Salads
Summertime is a wonderful time to serve up chilled salads as a simple meal or a side dish to your favorite grilled meat. Try some of these delicious recipes:
- Steak Salad
- Snickers Apple Salad
- Shrimp Pasta Salad
- Nuts About Berries Salad
- Blackberry Fruit Salad
- Grilled Caesar Salad
How to make Italian Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 16 oz tri-colored spiral pasta , cooked, drained, and rinsed
- 16 oz Zesty Italian Salad dressing
- 2 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning
Now here's the fun part, add a few or all of the following:
- artichoke hearts chopped
- tomatoes diced
- olives sliced
- salami or pepperoni diced
- red onion chopped
- green or red bell peppers chopped, or both
- string cheese chopped into little circles
- Parmesan cheese shredded
- broccoli chopped
- baby corn chopped
- avocado diced
- sun-dried tomatoes
- seasoned chicken cooked and diced
Instructions
- Cook the noodles in boiling water until al dente. Drain and pour into a large mixing bowl.
- While pasta is cooking, chop and dice any ingredients that need preparing.
- Gently toss the pasta, dressing, and all other remaining ingredients together.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. If you make it the day before you plan to serve it, wait until just before serving to add cheese or avocado to the salad.
Nellie Tracy says
Such a great summer recipe and fairly easy to make! Thank you!
Sam says
This looks delicious! My family will love it!
Ryann Donovan says
I never get tired of eating this