Monday, May 25, 2009

cold italian pasta


Basic Recipe:
12 oz. box rainbow rotini pasta
1 small can sliced olives
1 cup brocoli, chopped into tiny pieces
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped into tiny pieces
1/2 cup-1 cup mozzarella cut into little cubes
3/4 cup-1 cup Italian dressing (we use Berensteins Restaurant recipe)

optional add-ins:
green onions
grape or cherry tomatoes
cauliflower bits
sundried tomatoes
chicken
pepperoni
cucumber

Boil pasta according to directions on the package. Drain. Run under cool water. Pour into serving bowl. Add rest of ingredients except for dressing and mix together thoroughly. Once combined, add dressing to taste. Refrigerate. Serve with crusty garlic bread. Or don't.

I like to eat mine before it's been refrigerated. I also like to make this heavy on the vegetables to make it a healthier meal. The whole family loves eating this. It's fast and easy and makes great leftovers. Also a good meal to take to a picnic, bbq, or other gathering. We usually eat it as a main meal, but can be a good side dish too.

3 comments:

Texas Ghostrider said...

Ok, Now just HOW FAR are you from TEXAS? You think I can make in in a couple of hours on my bike? I need to hook up with your HF FTO and see if we can also taste test all of these recipes. I am hungry, all I had was a Taco Bell Salad.

mrs. fuzz said...

We're more than a couple hours from Tejas.

Anonymous said...

YUM-O! Your pic is gorgeous, I'm def going to make this one. And the PB cookies below look like heaven. I"m excited to try those, as my recipe is much more complicated and yet yours look better. I'll let you know how it goes : )