Italian Deli Pasta Salad
Rotini pasta, artichoke hearts, three kinds of olives, marinated roasted red peppers, pepperoncini or banana peppers, pecorino romano and parano cheese, salami or summer sausage and turkey pepperoni all tossed in Italian vinaigrette makes a delicious lunch to take on the trail or back to school.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. rotini pasta, cooked to al dente and drained
- 1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and cut in half or quarters
- 1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and quartered
- 1/2 cup pimento olives, cut in half or quarters
- 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts
- 1 cup roasted red peppers (in a jar)
- 1 cup pepperoncini or banana peppers
- 1 cup cubed cheese Any combination of: Pecorino Romano, Parrano, and sharp white cheddar
- 1 cup cubed salami or summer sausage
- 1 cup chopped pepperoni we love turkey pepperoni whenever we can find it
- 1 tsp. lemon pepper
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp. bottled Italian dressing optional
Instructions
- Cook pasta to al dente. Drain and toss in a large salad bowl with 1 tbsp. olive oil.
- Chop all of the veggies, cheeses and meats. Toss into the bowl with the pasta and season with lemon pepper, salt and pepper.
- Drizzle olive oil and red wine vinegar over all and toss well. Add additional Italian dressing if you want to. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
This salad is soooo good, you will want to make it every week! It’s great served right away, but even better if made a day or two ahead in order to let all of the flavors come together! We make it and then store it in an air-tight container in the refrigerator until we’re ready to serve it.