This beautiful, flavorful, and easy-to-make, Pesto Caprese Pasta Salad recipe helps bring a little bit of the Mediterranean to your table! It’s the perfect summer salad!
Whenever I start to crave pasta salads I know summer is near. There’s nothing better than having a quick, inexpensive, go-to meal that doesn’t heat up your kitchen. It’s the perfect summer pasta salad with fresh herbs to bring to a summer BBQ potluck and is always a crowd-pleaser at home. It’s great for light lunches and although it’s definitely a meal all on its own, in smaller portions it makes a great side dish alongside grilled tri-tip or grilled shrimp!
Quick and simple salads that I can throw together in a pinch are pretty much my jam throughout the summer, especially when it comes time to hosting family and friends. Artichoke Rice Salad and Chinese Chicken Salad are two of my other favorites that make entertaining a breeze. And for a real treat, I never get tired of the citrus twist on this classic chicken salad recipe. For a larger crowd, we add a bowl of Amish macaroni salad or Amish potato salad.
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What is Caprese Pasta Salad with Pesto?
All the flavors of Italy come together in one bite of this colorful salad. Cooked bowtie pasta, juicy red cherries and sun-dried tomatoes, white mozzarella balls and parmesan cheese, and green basil leaves with homemade Pesto sauce. It doesn’t get any more vibrant, wholesome or beautiful than that!
🍅 Ingredients:
- Bow-tie pasta – Cooked according to package instructions and cooled.
- Sea salt – For pasta water plus more for garnish.
- Cherry or grape tomatoes – Sweet Cherry tomatoes are a bit bigger and a bit juicier than grape tomatoes.
- Small fresh mozzarella balls – Also called mozzarella pearls or mini mozzarella balls, usually found in brine, very soft and they don’t have as long of a shelf life as packaged mozzarella.
- Fresh Basil leaves – Roughly chopped.
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese – Skip the grated stuff in a container. It has a lot of fillers, and the flavor doesn’t compare to freshly grated.
- Sun-dried tomatoes – Packed in olive oil and herbs.
- Homemade pesto sauce – you can use pre-made in a pinch, but homemade basil pesto is oh so good.
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Substitutions and Variations
- You can use any of your favorite pastas, we use bow-tie but you can also use penne, macaroni, fusilli, rotini pasta…
- Play around with the veggies in this salad. We’ve tried diced red bell peppers, cucumbers, kalamata olives, red onions, chickpeas, feta, baby spinach…
- If the pesto sauce is too strong, try to mix a little vinegarette dressing into the salad. Or use a balsamic glaze over the top.
- For a gluten free dish, try your favorite gluten-free pasta instead.
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: If you are going to make your own delicious basil pesto sauce, prep this before cooking the noodles and salad, homemade pesto sauce.
Step 1: Cook pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water until cooled.
Step 2: Place cooked cold pasta in a large salad bowl and toss with ingredients: fresh tomatoes, mozzarella balls, basil, cheese, and sun-dried tomatoes.
Step 3: When ingredients are thoroughly tossed together, add fresh pesto sauce (homemade or store-bought pesto) and mix together. Adjust with additional sauce or ingredients to your desired liking.
Step 4: Chill, covered, in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving. Add salt and black pepper as needed.
GARNISH/SLICE/SERVE: This caprese pasta salad pesto can be served as a main dish or grill up some shrimp or chicken for a more well-balanced complete meal. It can also be a perfect side dish accompanied by some of the dishes shown below.
What is Pesto Sauce?
Basil pesto sauce is an Italian blend of just a handful of ingredients. Originally it was basil, pine nuts, garlic, and Parmigiano (aka Parmesan – which is the imitation of the original only made in Italy) or Pecorino, which are both hard cheeses. Then all of this would be blended with olive oil to create a nice creamy sauce.
Other than the original recipe, there have been many adaptations and versions created by substituting, omitting, or adding certain ingredients. For example, I like to add a bit of lemon for a pop of citrus. Some people prefer cilantro instead of basil, pistachios, or almonds instead of pine nuts, and many other swaps.
There are probably about a dozen different creamy pesto recipes out there, and each one is as delicious as the next. It’s such a tasty versatile sauce that can be used for anything – on pasta, as a marinade or a spread, or even a dip!
Recipe FAQs
You can! Of course, as with any dish, the sooner you serve it the better, but there is no law that says you can’t keep it in the fridge overnight to let the flavors marry a little longer. You could potentially make it a couple of days ahead, however, just know you run the risk of the pasta getting a bit soggy.
Store leftovers with plastic wrap or in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. It’s great for meal prep for lunches throughout the week.
Other Delicious Dishes To Serve This Salad With
If you tried this Pesto Caprese Pasta Salad Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
Pesto Caprese Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 16 oz. bow-tie pasta cooked and cooled
- 2 teaspoons sea salt for pasta water plus more for garnish
- 2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
- 2 cups small fresh mozzarella balls
- ½ cup basil leaves roughly chopped
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil and herbs
- 1 recipe homemade pesto sauce
Instructions
- Cook pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water until cooled.
- Place cooked pasta in a large salad bowl and toss with ingredients: tomatoes, mozzarella balls, basil, cheese, and sun-dried tomatoes.
- When ingredients are thoroughly tossed together, add pesto sauce and mix together. Adjust with additional sauce or ingredients to your desired liking.
- Chill, covered, in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- You can use any of your favorite pastas, we use bow-tie but you can also use penne, macaroni, fusilli…
- Play around with the veggies in this salad. We’ve tried diced red bell peppers, cucumbers, kalamata olives, red onions, chickpeas, feta…
- If the pesto sauce is too strong, try to mix a little vinegarette dressing into the salad.
Nutrition
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