Summer Pasta Salad (Fresh + Vibrant)
Summer Pasta Salad is loaded with tender pasta and fresh summer produce including corn, tomatoes, cucumber, nectarines, and fresh basil, accented with fresh mozzarella and dressed in a luscious white balsamic vinaigrette!
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If you enjoy fresh summer recipes, you'll also love Easy Gazpacho, Baked Parmesan Summer Veggies, and Marinated Tomatoes!
With temps creeping up and Memorial Day weekend on the horizon, it feels like it's time to officially welcome summer! Or at least meteorological summer. 😉 And what better way to ring in the season than with a Summer Pasta Salad that's bursting with fresh summer produce for bright color and vibrant flavor?
If it's true that we eat with our eyes first, this is one tasty pasta salad across the senses. 🤗
Ingredients
This amazing Summer Pasta Salad boasts a combo of delectable flavors, varied textures, and gorgeous colors. And while you may certainly modify the ingredients to include any of your warm weather favorites, the recipe is positively delightful as written. 🙂
- Pasta. Cooked in well-salted water to al dente. I like to make this recipe with a corkscrew pasta, such as fusilli or rotini, but just about any shape of regular-sized pasta will work.
- Corn. If you can swing fresh-roasted sweet summer corn, I highly, highly recommend it! However, frozen corn works great as well. Simply (and quickly) thaw it by placing it in a colander and running under warm water. Drain the corn well before adding it to the bowl.
- Grape OR cherry tomatoes. Halved or quartered, depending on their size...you just want to end up with nice, bite-sized pieces.
- Cucumber. Peeled and diced. I prefer using an English cucumber to avoid any large seeds.
- Nectarines. Peeled and diced. Or you could substitute peaches for a similar flavor, as long as they're not too soft.
- Fresh mozzarella. I like using the smallest mozzarella balls I can find, usually labeled perlini ("pearls") or ciliegine ("cherry-sized"). If you can only find larger mozzarella balls, feel free to cut them in half. Or, if using a large piece of fresh mozzarella, you can cube it into bite-sized (½-inch or so) pieces.
- Fresh basil. Sliced into a chiffonade. (If you're unsure how to do that, you can find photos and instructions in this post!)
White Balsamic Vinaigrette
In addition to the glorious components above, this Summer Pasta Salad goes from good to great thanks to a scrumptious, sweet-tart dressing that ties everything together!
And the secret ingredient in that dressing? White balsamic vinegar! I originally tested this Summer Pasta Salad recipe with an orange vinaigrette and then a poppy seed dressing, and neither seemed quite right. But as soon as I whipped up this White Balsamic Vinaigrette, I knew I had hit gold!
I have to admit that white balsamic vinegar (<--- the brand I use) is a relatively new discovery for me, but I'm already obsessed! It's milder than traditional dark balsamic vinegar, with a lovely balance of sweet and tangy.
And when combined with a neutral-flavored oil, a pop of lemon juice, a smidge of Dijon, plus garlic powder, salt, and pepper, white balsamic vinegar transforms into the most magical and delicious vinaigrette!
How to Make Summer Pasta Salad
(The below photos are intended to be helpful, but please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for FULL DIRECTIONS.)
The "hardest" part of this Summer Pasta Salad recipe is chopping up the fresh produce. In other words, it's super easy to make!
- Make the White Balsamic Vinaigrette by vigorously whisking the ingredients in a bowl. Alternatively, you may whiz the dressing together in a blender or mini food processor or shake it up in a jar.
- Place your cooked and drained pasta in a very large bowl. Add the corn, halved tomatoes, diced cucumber, diced nectarines, fresh mozzarella, and basil chiffonade to the bowl.
- Pour the vinaigrette over the top and gently mix all of the ingredients with a large spoon until well combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Just before serving, garnish your Summer Pasta Salad with additional basil. Enjoy!
Tips + Tricks
Tweaking the sweetness of the vinaigrette: Typically, white balsamic vinegar is already naturally sweet. However, if you prefer a sweeter dressing, feel free to whisk in 1 teaspoon of honey at a time until your desired sweetness is reached.
Make-ahead tip: If you’re not going to serve your Summer Pasta Salad soon, I recommend only stirring in about ¾ of the vinaigrette before covering and refrigerating the bowl. The pasta will absorb a lot of the vinaigrette as it chills, so just before serving, stir in the remainder of the vinaigrette.
So are you ready to welcome summer with open arms, hungry eyes, and a growling stomach?
Because if you are, this Summer Pasta Salad is the perfect recipe for kicking off the season! ☺️
More Fabulous Pasta Salads
Summer Pasta Salad (Fresh + Vibrant)
Video
Ingredients
For the White Balsamic Vinaigrette:
- ½ cup white balsamic vinegar
- ⅓ cup avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Summer Pasta Salad:
- 8 ounces fusilli OR rotini pasta, cooked in salted water according to package directions, rinsed, & drained
- 2 cups corn, fresh roasted OR frozen & thawed
- 12 ounces grape tomatoes, halved OR quartered (depending on size)
- 1 English cucumber, peeled & diced
- 2 medium nectarines, peeled & diced
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella “pearls", drained
- ½ cup packed basil leaves, sliced into a chiffonade
Instructions
- Make the vinaigrette by whisking all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl until thoroughly incorporated, blending in a mini food processor, or shaking in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Set aside.
- Place the cooked pasta in a very large bowl. Add the corn, halved tomatoes, diced cucumber, diced nectarines, fresh mozzarella, and basil chiffonade to the bowl. Pour the vinaigrette over the top and gently mix all of the ingredients with a large spoon until well combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, garnish with additional basil, if desired.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- I like using some sort of corkscrew pasta in my Summer Pasta Salad, but feel free to substitute your favorite shape of pasta if you like.
- For the freshest summer flavor, I recommend making this recipe with fresh roasted corn that’s been sliced off the cob. You’ll need about 4 corn cobs to yield 2 cups of corn.
- If using frozen corn, you can quickly thaw it by placing it in a colander and running under warm water. Drain well before adding to the bowl.
- Typically, white balsamic vinegar is already naturally sweet. However, if you prefer a sweeter dressing, feel free to whisk in 1 teaspoon of honey at a time until your desired sweetness is reached.
- Use the smallest balls of fresh mozzarella available, often referred to as perlini (“pearls”), or the next-larger size, ciliegine ("cherry-sized"). If you can only find larger mozzarella balls, feel free to cut them in half. Or if using a large piece of fresh mozzarella, you can cube it into bite-sized (½-inch or so) pieces.
- If you make your Summer Pasta Salad ahead of time and won't be serving it for awhile, I recommend only stirring in about ¾ of the vinaigrette before covering and refrigerating the bowl. The pasta will absorb a lot of the vinaigrette as it chills, so just before serving, stir in the remainder of the vinaigrette.
