Caprese pasta salad is an easy Italian dish made of juicy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and fresh sweet basil, seasoned with salt and olive oil all combined with pasta. It is fresh, and a perfect side dish, a light meal, or take it to a potluck or dinner.
Introduction
Fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, fresh cherry tomatoes, are you starting to get the theme here, FRESH? That is what this is all about.
This is a classic Italian dish, although some will call it Mediterranean, it has the colors of the Italian flag, so I am staying with Italian. It generally considered a summer dish due to the fresh ingredients, but the ingredients are increasingly available year-round.
The main issue will be the size of this dish. Most recipes are twice this size, and I have cut it down to a more reasonable size. But more cutting down the size will just cause lots of partially used containers.
It stores well for only a few days but no longer. So not very "cooking for two" friendly for day to day use. So a special occasion dish for a large family get-together, a dish to pass, or pot lucks.
My Rating
A nice solid 4.
📋Ingredients
Pasta – a smaller type of pasta is like the mini penne that I’m using. Use the shape you want. Cook per the instructions to Al Dente. Rinse with cool water to stop cooking then toss with a few teaspoons of oil to stop cooking.
Vegetables - juicy tomatoes are the feature of the salad, but they need to hold together, so cherry tomatoes cut in half are perfect. Other vegetables like bell pepper, cucumber, olives, asparagus, or squash could be added.
Cheese - It must be a fresh mozzarella. I don’t see another cheese here.
Seasoning - just fresh garlic and fresh basil will do.
Dressing - just good olive oil is best to let the fresh tastes stand out. But some people suggest Italian or vinaigrette dressings. I’m opposed to heavy tastes like balsamic, but it’s your salad. A bit of red wine vinegar would be nice.
Other add-ins - diced or shredded chicken will make it a complete meal. Other good options would be ham or pepperoni.
❄️Storage
This is one to two-day salad. But two days is pushing it. If you do store it for a day, toss before serving and taste test and add a bit more oil and salt/pepper if needed.
This recipe makes a LOT of salad. I'm glad we loved it. We both had 2-3 servings the first round and added some chicken to the leftovers and a splash of Italian dressing to freshen it up.
📖Summer Salad Recipes
Fresh Spinach Salad; A Summer Favorite
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
Use the freshest ingredients you can get.
Start by cutting about 1 pound of cherry tomatoes in half.
In a large bowl, add tomatoes along with 2-3 cloves crushed garlic, ¼ cup good olive oil, 1 teaspoon of coarse salt, a pinch of red pepper (about ⅛ t or less) and pepper to taste (about ¼ teaspoon to start) mix well and set aside for at least 30 minutes.
We used mini penne. Cook 8 oz of pasta according to package instructions for Al Dente. When done, rinse with cool water to stop the cooking. Then, toss with a few teaspoons of olive oil to prevent sticking.
Chop 8 oz of fresh mozzarella into bite-size pieces.
Chop 10 leaves of fresh basil.
Add the pasta, the mozzarella, and the basil to the tomatoes and mix well. Refrigerate for a few hours to let flavors blend if you have time.
📖Full Recipe
Caprese Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound cherry tomatoes
- ½ pound pasta - like mini penne
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella
- 2-3 cloves garlic - crushed
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 10 fresh basil leaves
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper - about ⅛ teaspoon
- Pepper to taste - start at ¼ teaspoon
Instructions
- Use the freshest ingredients you can get. Start by cutting about 1 pound of cherry tomatoes in half.
- In a large bowl, add tomatoes along with 2-3 cloves crushed garlic, ¼ cup good olive oil, 1 teaspoon of coarse salt, a pinch of red pepper (about ⅛ t or less) and pepper to taste (about ¼ teaspoon to start) mix well and set aside for at least 30 minutes.
- We used mini penne. Cook 8 oz of pasta according to package instructions for Al Dente. When done, rinse with cool water to stop the cooking. Then, toss with a few teaspoons of olive oil to prevent sticking.
- Chop 8 oz of fresh mozzarella into bite-size pieces.
- Chop 10 leaves of fresh basil.
- Add the pasta, the mozzarella, and the basil to the tomatoes and mix well. Refrigerate for a few hours to let flavors blend if you have time.
My Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- Fresh ingredients are the key to a good result.
- This makes a lot of salad. It has already been decreased. You can decrease more but probably will have lots of partially used containers of ingredients.
- Great for family get-togethers, take a dish, or pot lucks.
- The ingredients are not set in stone. Many options are discussed in the recipe post.
- This is very good with added chicken.
- Only good refrigerated for 1-2 days.
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Originally Published August 10, 2013. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
abby
Haven't tried it yet, but looks delicious! how many does it serve?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Abby,
Welcome to the site.
Unfortunately, this is a large recipe for 12. More for a family gathering than "for two". You can adjust the number of servings in the recipe card.
Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the rating
Dan
Terri Odekirk
This is fantastic! I used to buy a similar salad made at Wegman’s, but this is much better!
DrDan
Hi Terri,
Welcome to the blog.
I think the fresh ingredients make all the taste difference.
Glad you like it.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Wanda
Making it again for family gathering. Love it!!!
Wicked
Made this to take to Saturday nite dance party at my cousin's house. We work up quite the appetite! Easy tasty delious!
Amy
Can I make ahead of time and refrig
DrDan
Yes for a day or two. Of course, the tomatoes will deteriorate some with time.
But add the basil just before serving.
Kim
I added shredded chicken & instead of red pepper flakes - I had none - I added epicure sundries tomatoes herbs (1 tap). Delicious!!
DrDan
Hi Kim,
Last time I made this, I added left over rotisserie chicken also. It makes it a complete lunch for us.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Handy Gilbert
This sounds delicious! The dressing gives a nice little extra touch to the fruit. I have always made my fruit salad plain, I am definitely going to try it.
Chris
Great pasta dish, I like the use of pepper flake, even in small quantities it brings a lot of flavor.
Dan Mikesell
I know some will skip it but really folks, the other tastes will just pop with it.