We hosted a small lunch party at the restaurant today and they requested an assortment of sandwiches and salads and so I whipped up my signature Mediterranean Penne Pasta Salad. This pasta salad is really colorful and has wonderful flavors and textures and is very easy to make.

To start, cook your penne pasta (you can use whatever short length pasta you like). I prefer using penne because it holds up well and since the noodle is hollow, the pasta is flavored both inside and out which adds to the flavor of the finished dish. To enhance the flavor you need to make sure you salt the water, this is especially true when serving cold pasta dishes because the coldness dulls the flavor of the pasta (or any dish for that matter). This is not a pasta dish that you want to serve al dente, so make sure to cook the pasta until soft to the tooth. The pasta will firm up as it chills. Drain the pasta noodles and immerse in an ice bath. Drain again really well and chill.

Once the pasta is chilled, add small diced sweet red and yellow peppers, sliced kalamata olives, capers, chopped basil, oregano and mint (the mint really adds a fresh flavor) diced feta cheese, shredded fresh parmesan cheese, and sliced heirloom toy-box tomatoes or cherry tomatoes. You can also use any combination of ingredients you like such as braised artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, green onions, or mozzarella cheese, etc. Toss the pasta with extra virgin olive oil (preferably Greek) add red wine vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Then let the pasta salad chill for at least an hour to let the flavors combine and then toss and taste again. Add fresh arugula (if you add the arugula sooner it will wilt from the moisture), salt, pepper, and the olive oil.  To finish add fresh squeezed lemon juice and toss!

This Mediterranean pasta salad is great with so many dishes (burgers, sandwiches, or grilled meat and fish kabobs) and it’s fun to experiment with many different flavor combinations. I hope enjoy!