Ingredients
Italian Dressing
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
Spaghetti Salad
12 ounces spaghetti noodles broken in half
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped English cucumber
1 cup grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes sliced in half
1/2 green bell pepper chopped
1/2 red bell pepper or yellow bell pepper chopped
1/4 cup sliced black olives
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/4 cup sliced pepperoncini
1/3 cup chopped hard salami
2 tablespoons grated Fresh Parmesan.
Instructions
In small bowl whisk together red wine vinegar, garlic, sugar, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in olive oil.
Cook spaghetti al dente according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water.
In a large bowl toss the cooked spaghetti with the cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, black olives, onions, pepperoncini, hard salami, and Parmesan Cheese. Pour the Italian dressing over the top and toss to coat.
Notes
Cook the spaghetti al dente and drain well.
The Italian Salad Dressing can be made up to 5 days in advance. Store covered in the fridge. However remove from the refrigerator about 45 minutes prior to making the spaghetti pasta salad.
Chop your vegetables fairly fine so they complement the spaghetti.
You can use any colored bell peppers. They all lend different flavors and sweetness but they all work in this pasta salad.
If you don’t like an ingredient substitute something else or omit it. For instance if you don’t like black olives try capers. If you don’t like red onion try scallions. If you don’t like salami try mini pepperoni. As I always say don’t throw the baby out with the bath water.
For a vegetarian version of this Spaghetti Salad, simply omit the hard salami.
Nutrition
Calories: 416kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Sodium: 532mg | Potassium: 348mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 457IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 1mg
