A fresh summery pasta salad with sunblush tomatoes, tomatoes, corn and a herb dressing. So quick to put together.
Summer Pasta Salad
In the Summer we really enjoy cold pasta salads. Now I'm not talking claggy leftover pasta, I'm talking about firm, glossy pasta with Summer flavours and colours that pop.
Pasta salad shouldn't just be a scoop on the side of your plate at a BBQ or a small tub quickly grabbed out a chiller cabinet for a hurried lunch at your desk. It deserves it's place at the dinner table too.
Belly Button Pasta
If you have trouble finding it, I buy mine in M&S and Tesco now sell it.
I made a dressing of basil and rapeseed oil, added sunblush tomatoes, fresh Santini tomatoes and sweetcorn, with a dollop of Mr Organic Sundried Tomato Pesto (which is vegan) thrown in for extra flavour.
Quick Pasta Dish
This summery pasta salad only takes a few minutes to make once the pasta is cooked, so it's great for weeknight meals.
I made enough for us to enjoy a portion for lunch the next day and Cooper and I had a little fresh mozzarella in ours, but that's optional.
Do you like cold pasta salads or do you prefer your pasta hot?
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Pasta Tip
For the glossiest, firm pasta in a pasta salad, rinse the just-cooked pasta under cold water until it is completely cold. If you do this you will have shiny pasta and no claggy pasta disasters.
Summer Tomato and Corn Pasta Salad
A fresh summery pasta salad with sunblush tomatoes, tomatoes, corn and a herb dressing. So quick to put together.
Ingredients
- 500g dried Messicani pasta
- 1 large handful fresh basil
- 4 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 jar sunblush tomatoes, plus a glug of the oil
- 150 - 200g santini tomatoes (or other)
- 340g sweetcorn
- 2 tbsp Mr Organic Sundried Tomato Pesto (or similar)
- a good grinding of black pepper
Instructions
1. Cook the pasta according to the packet until al dente. Drain and rinse under a cold tap until the pasta is cold and glossy (this is the secret to a great pasta salad). Shake off as much water as possible.2. While that pasta is cooking whizz the basil and rapeseed oil into a dressing. Use scissors to snip the sunblush tomatoes in their jar, drain the corn and cut the fresh tomatoes in half.3. Once the pasta is well drained, mix through the herb dressing and the pesto. 4. Next add the sunblush tomatoes and a glug of oil from the jar, which has a wonderful flavour, then add the fresh tomatoes and corn. Mix together well and season with black pepper.5. Serve and enjoy!notes: leftover pasta salad will keep happily in the fridge for a few days. Toss it before serving to re-coat in the oil.
Details
Total time: Yield: Serves 6
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Food Budget
I priced this recipe up using supermarket ingredients. It costs £3.02 to make this popular family dish. That's just 50p per portion.
500g pasta shells = 50p
Half bag fresh basil = 35p
4 tbsp rapeseed oil = 20p
150g sundried tomatoes = 87p
15og cherry tomatoes = 41p
325g sweetcorn = 35p
2 tbsp tomato pesto = 34p
Total = £3.02 Follow me on social media
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If you like my pasta salad, why not try one of my other pasta dishes. This Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Sauce for spaghetti is one of our family favourites at the moment.
Lovely pasta dish for a summer picnic. Blessings, Catherine
ReplyDeleteThanks Catherine and yes this would be perfect for a picnic :)
DeleteThat's fantastically colourful - you should be adding to Katie's Speedy Suppers since it's a cold pasta salad the theme is salads this month.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sarah and good thinking. I've added the link :)
DeleteA great light and summery pasta dish. I am trying to spend as little time in the kitchen as possible at the moment.
ReplyDeleteBecause of the heat Dannii? It's not so hot up here in Scotland. I had to put a cardi on this afternoon.
DeleteHah, belly button pasta. I've never come across this shape before! I'm more of a hot pasta kind of a girl but then again I've never had cold pasta salads before. Maybe it's time for a change...
ReplyDeleteOh you have to try pasta salad Michelle. A good pasta salad is a thing of joy. Just make sure the pasta is al dente and you rinse it in cold water until cool. Then add the dressings.
DeleteLove the combination of all those tomato flavours.... and belly button pasta!
ReplyDeleteHehe it is nice pasta and the flavour is great! More of a serving suggestion than recipe.
DeleteI've seen that pasta at M&S and yes, it does look like a tummy button! Cooper must think it's cute :-) I rarely eat pasta these days (menopause and pasta don't mix...) but it is certainly a go-to for a quick meal. And healthy too when done as you have here. Yum!!
ReplyDeleteReally, I didn't realise that about the menopause. That is a shame, it's so comforting and quick.
DeletePerfect for the heat we're having at the moment - so colourful too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jan :)
DeleteI love salads like this. So simple yet rammed with fresh flavour and taste. Can't wait to get off this damn plane and get back home and start cooking with all the lovely ingredients I've brought home from Italy
ReplyDeleteOh you lucky thing Dom. I'm looking forward to catching those recipes :)
DeleteI think the tomatoes this summer have been particularly flavoursome so I've been adding them to everything! This looks a lovely dinner
ReplyDeleteThanks CC :)
Deletelooks delicious - that is really cute that you call it belly button pasta - must try it as I get stuck in either fusilli or penne pasta rut
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean Johanna, we mostly eat penne, but I've been trying to make an effort and I don't think penne works as well for a cold pasta salad. Too big pieces I think. Bow pasta works well too!
DeleteLooks very tasty and I cannot resist pasta salad at the buffet table!
ReplyDeleteThanks for submitting to Speedy Suppers, the round up is up now at 8 summer salad recipes and I am hosting in August with the theme "picnics".
Thanks Sarah, I'll go have a look :)
DeleteThis looks lovely - and it's something I could prepare before I collect S from nursery! Might give it a shot!
ReplyDeleteYes it's nice and quick,, but super tasty. The secret is to rinse that pasta under cold water until the pasta is totally cold, to stop the cooking process.
DeleteThis looks tasty and easy to prepare! I'm definitely a meat lover so vegetarian food was something I ate really rarely (and I also never tried such a pasta salad), but I decided to eat and live healthier and well, the initiative of Meatless Mondays was my huge inspiration (I guess everyone interested in this lifestyle knows about the campaign but if not, I have read about our branch of it in Toronto here). So these were my first steps and now I'm trying to find my new favourite tastes... :)
ReplyDelete