Caprese pasta salad. Gorgeous salad brimming with summer flavors, thanks to vibrant tomatoes, juicy blueberries and cheesy bocconcini. This refreshing salad perfect for warm days gets the right note of deliciousness from a generous drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette.
Nothing is more refreshing than a big bowl of fresh salad on a hot summer day. And local summer produce is the right way to go when it comes to making the best salads. The gorgeous colors of summer and spring bring the most authentic dishes to your dinner table. Absolutely the best!
In this recipe, classic caprese salad gets a makeover with the addition of pasta turning it into a stunning caprese pasta salad. Pasta balances the nutrition in this salad recipe and it’s also forms a blank canvas to customize the ingredients to suit your taste. Beautifully delicious and refreshing from all angles!
Caprese Pasta Salad Recipe
This recipe comes with a delicious twist on the classic caprese salad. As you know, caprese salad is a beautiful combination of juicy tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. To level up the flavors in this classic recipe, I have added a punnet of blueberries and replaced mozzarella with cherry bocconcini. Now, bring in the carbs from pasta, you have a lovely meal or side dish for your summer days.
You can make this salad with your favorite pasta. But, I really love spirals in pasta salads as they have more surface area to absorb all the amazing flavors from other ingredients as well as the dressing. When you make pasta salad, make sure you cook the pasta a little more than al dente.
Cool the cooked pasta to room temperature before you add in all the other elements of this caprese pasta salad. Beautifully vibrant tomatoes are so perfect in this salad. The contrasting sweetness of blueberries is a surprise element in this recipe, but it pairs really well with the other ingredients.
Mozzarella is the most commonly used cheese in classic caprese salad, but I decided to replace it with cherry bocconcini. And finally, you will also need plenty of chopped basil.
With the dressing, the beautiful elements of balsamic vinaigrette plays an immense role in creating the best salad. It’s a simple combo of extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic and honey. Honey pairs well with the sweet blueberries in this caprese pasta salad.
Drizzle this pasta salad generously with balsamic vinaigrette. Delish!
More Pasta Salad Recipes:
Caprese Pasta Salad | Video
Ingredients
Pasta salad:
- 2 cups pasta I used spirals
- 1 and ½ cups halved cherry tomatoes
- 125 g blueberries
- 220 g cherry bocconcini
- ½ cup chopped basil leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Water to cook pasta
- Olive oil to toss pasta
Balsamic vinaigrette:
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- ½ tablespoon honey
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water for about 10-13 minutes or until the pasta is cooked a little more than al dente. Drain. Toss in a little olive oil. Cool completely.
- Place cooked pasta in a large bowl. Add tomatoes, blueberries, cherry bocconcini and basil. Season with salt and pepper.
- To make balsamic vinaigrette, place olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic and honey in a small container with lid. Cover with lid. Shake well until combined. Season with salt and pepper.
- Drizzle pasta salad with balsamic vinaigrette. Toss.
Video
Notes
- Replace bocconcini with mozzarella if you like
- Use gluten free pasta to make this salad gluten free
- Add some pine nuts for a nice crunch
Nutrition
This recipe is sponsored by Vetta Pasta, however, all opinions are my own.
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