Pearl Mozzarella, Tomato & Fennel Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
12 oz cherry tomatoes, halved
8 oz pearl mozzarella*, drained
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cups cooked, small pasta


for the dressing:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, grated
salt
pepper


Directions:
In a lidded jar or salad dressing shaker, shake together the dressing ingredients until emulsified. In a medium bowl, toss together the salad ingredients. Drizzle the dressing then toss again. Serve at room temperature.

*The container I had was labeled "pearlini". The pearls were very small.

My thoughts:

I'm trying to make the most of late summer produce and this salad was one of my easier and tastier creations. It was sort of inspired by the ubiquitous caprese salad but I added pasta and fennel to make it more of a meal. I used these super cute tiny balls of cheese but I think diced fresh mozzarella would work as well.

It is quite good and even held up a for a few days in the fridge to no ill effect. It is better at room temperature so let it sit out a few minutes before serving.

Feta-Sopressata Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
6 cups cooked pasta
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 oz lemon, garlic & oregano feta crumbles
10 jarred pepperoncini, drained and chopped
1/3 cup grilled or boiled corn
8 thin slices sopressata, cut into strips
salt
freshly ground black pepper
white wine vinegar

Directions:
Toss together the pasta, tomatoes, peppers, sopressata, feta salt, pepper and corn. Drizzle with vinegar to taste.

My thoughts:

OMG, it is hot here in Baltimore. We have spent most of the summer hovering in the 90-100 degree area. Normally we'd get a few HOT days but we'd get some cool(ish) days in-between. However, it has been hot, hot, hot nearly every day and without the benefit of being a student (or teacher, I actually liked this policy more when I was teaching than as a kid) of getting out of school if it hits 90 before 11 AM. Now I just work at home and break a sweat as I wash the dishes. I've taken to doing tricks like the one I did with this salad and trying to cook once and eat twice. I boiled an extra amount of pasta for dinner so I could make this pasta salad without cooking at all the next day. Which, really, is more important than you'd think when living in a 1930s, non air conditioned house in the city. The summer is prime panini weather so I always have panini ingredients on hand and used them to create this Italian deli inspired salad. Easy + tasty. Win-win.

Deviled Shrimp Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb freshly steamed, peeled shrimp
1 stalk celery, diced
1/4 cup diced onion
8 oz cooked, small pasta

for the dressing:
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Old Bay
1 tablespoon tarragon vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
salt
pepper

Directions:
Place the shrimp, celery, onion and pasta in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the mixture and stir to coat. Sprinkle with seasonings and fold to distribute evenly.

My thoughts:

Working from home, it is easy to fall into a lunch rut. It is time consuming to go somewhere just to pick up lunch (and expensive!) and I don't always have leftovers of any real substance to eat. I end up eating odds and ends of things and not really enjoying my lunch. Finally, I've started buying a little extra of whatever we are having for dinner to make something different with for lunch the next day. It doesn't always work but when we are having shrimp, I steam up some extra and make shrimp salad or even have shrimp cocktail. When I am feeling extra peckish, I made this salad. It is filling and the dressing really sets it apart from other shrimp salads.

Parm, Olive & Pepperoni Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
8 oz rotini
1/2 English cucumber, diced
2 1/2 oz turkey pepperoni, sliced
1 large cubanelle pepper, diced
1/4 cup diced red onion
10 pimento stuffed green olives, sliced

for the dressing:
2 oz olive oil
2 oz red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Directions:
Prepare pasta according to package instructions. Drain and allow to cool. Place the pasta and the remaining salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss. In a small bowl or dressing shaker, mix together the dressing ingredients until emulsification occurs. Drizzle over the salad and toss again. Serve at room temperature for best flavor.

My thoughts:

Every year around this time I really, really want to eat light, spring-like dishes. Unfortunately, living in the mid-Atlantic means that despite recent warm weather, there are virtually no vegetables or fruits in season locally right now. Overwintered rhubarb or leeks maybe but that's about it. So frustrating. So what I've been doing is making a lot of salads that don't absolutely rely on in season vegetables to be awesome. I've been getting a head start on grilling some proteins for this summer's grilling posts and these salads are prefect accompaniments; I can make them ahead of time leaving me free to grill without running back and forth to the kitchen. The trick is to include enough fresh ingredients in the salad to keep it from tasting too straight from the cupboard but nothing that truly needs to be in season to be delicious like tomatoes or corn. A bit of fresh Italian parsley brightens the dressing, hot house English cukes and cubanelles are pretty tasty year round. Good quality olives, Parmesan and pepperoni round it out and add an Italian edge which makes it robust enough to serve along steaks or pork marinaded with Italian herbs. The leftovers make a tasty light lunch the next day too.

Deconstructed Pizza Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
8 oz small pasta (I used radiatore)
8 oz fresh mozzarella, diced
4 oz sliced mushrooms
2 1/2 oz turkey pepperoni, halved
2 1/2 oz baby spinach
3 cups diced tomatoes
1 large cubanelle pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced

for the dressing:
2 oz olive oil
2 oz red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced basil
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Directions:
Prepare pasta according to package instructions. Drain and allow to cool. Place the pasta and the remaining salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss. In a small bowl or dressing shaker, mix together the dressing ingredients until emulsification occurs. Drizzle over the salad and toss again. Serve at room temperature for best flavor.

My thoughts:

Since the unofficial end of summer is this weekend, I thought I'd share one last summer salad recipe. This one is perfect for taking to party as it appeals to even picky eaters and the pasta salad adverse. It is basically all of the ingredients that make up a typical pizza tossed with pasta. Who doesn't like pizza? The dressing is light and garlicy, not creamy or overpowering and just really pulls all of the flavors together. I used some heirloom tomatoes I picked up at the farmers market (my tomatoes have been slow to ripen this year) but I think halved cherry or grape tomatoes would work well.

Viva la Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
12 oz rainbow rotini, cooked
12 oz marinated artichoke hearts, drained and marinade reserved
8 oz mozzarella, diced
1/2 English cucumber, diced
1/2 large red onion, diced
6 radishes, sliced thinly
1 stalk celery, diced
2 cups halved campari tomatoes
1/3 cup diced green onion (green parts only)
1/3 cup sliced spiced olive-cured green olives


dressing:
1/4 cup marinade from the artichoke hearts
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon minced basil
1/2 tablespoon minced Italian parsley
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt
pepper

Directions:
In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Place the salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss to evenly distribute. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss again. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.

My thoughts:

I haven't made too much in the way of pasta salads before but I have been trying to will actual summer weather into existence and thought that a cold salad might do the trick. Not quite sure if it worked but it has been rather sunny the last few days if very humid.

The salad itself was very tasty; comprised mostly of items I purchased at our local Italian market. The olives and artichokes are quite robustly flavored and the mozzarella adds a creamy note. The dressing couldn't be easier and using the marinade from the artichokes really ties the flavors together.

Deli-Style Macaroni Salad

Ingredients:
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 medium onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, grated
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
salt
white pepper
16 oz cooked macaroni (I actually used cellentani)


Directions:
In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, celery seed, vinegar, sugar, mustard, salt and pepper. In a large bowl, stir together the onion, celery, carrot, and macaroni. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving, but overnight is best.

My thoughts:

My Grandpop celebrated his 94th birthday today. My mom made crabcakes (naturally, my family's been in Baltimore over a 150 years, anything else would be sacrilege) and I thought I'd bring a side dish to his birthday lunch. He really likes getting macaroni salad at the deli so I thought I'd make a homemade version. I actually had never made a tradition macaroni salad before so I had to improvise, but I think I did a good job of maintaining the style of the dish, while using ingredients that I like-celery seeds, high quality Dijon mustard instead of what I am sure is the traditional yellow and white wine vinegar instead of plain white distilled. The result? The best macaroni salad I ever had, bar none. Even my normally macaroni salad eschewing husband enjoyed it.

Winterized BLT Chicken Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
4 strips thick cut bacon
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
1 lb pasta (I used gemelli)
2 cooked, boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
3/4 cup frozen spinach
1/2 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes*
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons capers
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar


Directions:
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Boil the noodles until al dente, adding the frozen spinach in at the last minute or so. Drain. Meanwhile, in a hot pan, fry the bacon until crispy. Drain on a paper towel lined plate and cut into bite-sized pieces. Place all ingredients in a large bowl. Stir to evenly distribute the mayonnaise, balsamic vinegar. Serve at room temperature. Refrigerate leftovers.

*I used dry (i.e. not oil packed) sun-dried tomatoes so I just tossed them in with the pasta during the last minute or so of cooking, just to plump them up a bit. If you are using oil packed tomatoes, blot them before use.

Yield: approximately 6-8 main course servings.

Note: The whole salad can be prepared the day before serving with great success.

My thoughts:

Winterizing isn't just for summer homes and vehicles anymore. I had my mother and grandfather over for lunch today and I wasn't sure of what to make until the last minute. I wanted to make something that would be substantial enough to stand alone (no side dishes!) and that hopefully result some leftovers for tomorrow's lunch. Last night my husband sauteed a chicken breast (with some shallots and a basic marinade) for his lunch today so I had him to saute me some extra in case I wanted to use it in something today. This morning I was looking through some recipes and found one for BLT chicken salad sandwiches. The recipe sounded good if a bit mayo-heavy. The problem was that we only had 4 slices of bread in the house, I wouldn't eat a fresh tomato in December if you paid me and I don't buy lettuce in the winter. So that was out. But I liked the concept so I started from scratch and made a winterized pasta salad using some of the flavors of a good BLT but using high quality frozen and shelf stable ingredients instead of a bunch of out of season vegetables. Which isn't to say the pasta isn't fresh tasting, the flavors are clear and bright, only that you don't have to wait until Summer for a good pasta salad.

Tuna Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
12 oz canned albacore tuna, thoroughly drained
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped carrots
1/4 cup wilted fresh or defrosted and drained frozen spinach
1/8 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons capers
2-5 tablespoons mayonnaise (to taste)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
salt

pepper

1/2 lb cooked pasta


Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl with a large, flat spoon. Serve at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers in a air tight container.

My thoughts:

I hesitated before posting this, I am not sure if one really needs a recipe for tuna pasta salad, but it came out so well today, I couldn't resist. Tuna pasta salad is one of my favorite things to take for lunch. I made the switch from tuna salad to tuna pasta salad sandwiches to eliminate the need for bread. I hate soggy bread, so I'd pack the bread separately but then I'd either forget to pack the bread, or it would get squished by lunchtime it or we wouldn't even have bread to take. Tuna pasta salad on the other hand can be a whole meal itself, so I don't have to even worry about bringing a snack. Well, maybe some fruit.

I also think this a good time for my yearly reminder that the whole mayo going bad in the hot weather and poisoning you thing is a myth. That is only true if you are using your own homemade mayonnaise. Most commercially prepared mayonnaise is fairly acidic which might actually inhibit the growth of bacteria. Get the facts here. The real culprit is cross contamination from your hands or utensils or the mishandling ingredients.