This Greek pasta salad with red wine vinaigrette is a recipe that is not like any other that involves only vegetables and pasta, it goes further with a secret ingredient that will make it delicious. Read on to see all the steps to follow.
This Greek pasta salad, which often has a permanent place on picnic tables all spring and summer, and disappears faster than the rest of its fellow side dishes, this time involves more than just noodles, veggies, Or a commercial salad dressing vinaigrette from the supermarket. Well, it’s a quick and easy salad to make, but here’s the secret – the vinaigrette is the real star of the show.
So bring the pasta to a boil, go for some fresh vegetables of the season and mix everything with the vinaigrette that also contains a star ingredient. So you pop it in the fridge and let the flavor work its magic in the meantime.
Greek pasta salad with red wine vinaigrette
Yield: 6-8 servings.
Prep time: 3 hours (includes refrigeration).
Cook time: 10 min.
Ingredients
For the pasta salad
- 2 1/2 cups uncooked organic whole wheat pasta, such as penne or rotini.
- 2/3 cup red onion slices.
- 15 cherry tomatoes, halved.
- 1 cup diced cucumber.
- 3/4 cup sliced olives.
- 3/4 cup diced green bell peppers.
- 1 cup shredded organic low-fat cheese.
For the vinaigrette
- 1/3 cup (secret ingredient).
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic.
- 1 teaspoon organic brown sugar.
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano.
- 1/2 cup of extra virgin oil.
Addresses
Make the pasta salad:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the whole wheat pasta and cook until al dente. Strain the pasta and transfer it to a large bowl to cool slightly. While the pasta is cooling, prepare the dressing.
Make the vinaigrette
In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients, except for the olive oil. While beating, add the olive oil. Season the dressing with salt and pepper, to taste.
Add the onion, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, green peppers, and cheese to the bowl with the pasta.
Pour the vinaigrette over the pasta to combine, then cover the salad with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours overnight. When ready to serve, toss the pasta salad again and enjoy cold or at room temperature.
Note: If you don’t want to use wheat flours, you can opt for pasta, now in health food stores you can find rice pasta, quinoa and others.