Gluten Free All Year Round Italian Pasta Salad


What’s not to love about a cold pasta salad? Whether it is for a barbeque, potluck, dinner, or an easy lunch throughout the week, this pasta salad is full of flavor! This cold gluten free pasta salad, which is great all year round offers a ton of versatility to satisfy your tastebuds! What is so great about a dish like this, is it can be made ahead of time and it’s ready to go if you have a jam-packed schedule!

Ingredients:

This recipe is filled with many fresh ingredients. This pasta salad in the summer is great because if you’re like me, you’ll head out to the garden to pick fresh vegetables to add to your salad. There truly is something different about a vegetable that is homegrown compared to a store-bought, the flavor is packing!

  • Pasta (Whatever type of pasta you prefer, I use Fusilli)
  • Pepperoni
  • Salami
  • Fresh Mozzarella Cheese
  • Cherry Tomatoes
  • Shaved Parmesan Cheese
  • Red Onion
  • Red, Yellow, and Orange Peppers

Tips:

  • Make this pasta salad your own, by adding whatever flavor you desire!
    • Suggested Additions:
      • Cucumbers
      • Basil
      • Green Pepper
      • Olives
      • Roasted Corn – Yum, this adds a summer feel and is absolutely delicious. We roast corn on the cob on the grill in the summer and slice it off the cob to put into the salad.
      • Proscuitto
  • Use a chopper or Miracle chopper (the same one I use in the Mango Salsa recipe to chop the vegetables).
  • When you’re making the pasta do not overcook the noodles. You’ll want the pasta to be al dente for the salad to turn out the best. Otherwise, it can turn into mush really quickly. Especially with some gluten-free noodle brands they can tend to fall apart. LiveGFree from Aldi, I have always had good luck with and suggest!
  • If you’re looking for a quicker route for the dressing you can use a premade gluten-free Italian dressing that is store-bought. Ken’s Steak House has a great Lite Northern Italian with Basil and Romano that is gluten free.
  • Making this cold pasta salad ahead of time? Great, just wait to put the dressing on until the day of. The longer the dressing sits on the salad the mushier it can get.
  • If you’re going to a barbeque or taking this dish to a potluck use a foil roaster pan! These pans I use a ton! They’re easy to mix all the ingredients in and you can easily throw them away when you’re done.

Instructions:

  1. Boil water and cook the pasta based on the directions on the package. Drain & rinse with cold water!
  2. Chop the red onion, peppers, pepperoni, salami, cherry tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella cheese. Place the chopped ingredients into a large mixing bowl or foil roaster pan.
  3. Add the pasta once cooked, drained, and rinsed. Try to remove as much excess water and let sit in a colander for 10 mins to release the extra water. The pasta should be cooled completely before adding the additional ingredients.
  4. Mix the dressing together by adding all the ingredients to a bowl and whisking together until combined.
  5. Combine everything together. Stir the pasta salad until the ingredients are all coated in the dressing.
  6. Let the salad sit for a 1/2 hour before serving to allow all the flavors to combine. If you do not have time to wait you can serve right away. Serve cold & enjoy!
  7. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days!

All Year Round Italian Pasta Salad

Prep Time25 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Salad, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: American, Italian
Keyword: Gluten Free, Pasta Salad
Servings: 6

Ingredients:

  • 1 16oz gluten free pasta tri-colored adds a bold flavor
  • 8 ounces salami chopped
  • 4 ounces pepperoni chopped
  • 1 c fresh mozzarella cheese pearls or sliced (chopped in quarters)
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes halved
  • 1 c Italian dressing homemade or store bought
  • 1/3 c red onion
  • 2 red, yellow, or orange pepper you can use a mix of colors to brighten the dish
  • 1/2 green pepper
  • 1/3 c parmesan cheese shredded
  • 3 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • salt and pepper to taste

Homemade Italian Dressing

  • 1 c olive oil
  • 1/3 c red wine vinegar (less or more to taste)
  • 1/2 tsp garlic
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

  • 1. Cook pasta al dente based on the package instructions. Strain, rinse, and cool completely.
  • 2. Chop and add to a large mixing bowl salami, pepperoni, cheese, parsley, peppers, onion, and tomatoes.
  • 3. Add cooled pasta, shredded cheese, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and Italian dressing. Combine together.
  • 4. Let sit for a 1/2 hour in the refrigerator before serving. Enjoy cold!
  • 5. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Italian Dressing:

  • In a small mixing bowl, measure and add all ingredients. Whisk to combine well.
Pin Recipe March 3, 2023
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