Pasta Salad

Ingredients

bowtie-pasta
  • 3 cups cooked pasta
  • 1 cup Italian dressing
  • 1/2 cup green pepper
  • 1/2 cup red pepper
  • 1/2 red onion
  • 1 can sliced olives
  • 1 cup artichoke hearts
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Prepare the pasta according to the directions on its package. While the pasta is cooking, cut the red and green peppers and the red onion into thin strips about 1 to 2 inches long. When the pasta is done cooking, drain it and combine it with all other ingredients. Chill and serve.

Variations

For pasta, we prefer to use pasta bows. Other small pasta shapes would work well, too. I don’t think I’d want to try a long pasta like spaghetti. When we’re in a hurry, we’ll drain the pasta and then rinse it with cold water (and maybe even use a little ice) to cool it off quickly.

We use marinated artichoke hearts and have never tried the non-marinated variety.

We have tried different Italian salad dressings and have settled on Newman’s Own Olive Oil & Vinegar Dressing.

And, maybe it goes without saying, but our standard variation is to make a double recipe. It just works out well. One box of pasta bow pasta, one red pepper, and one green pepper, one red onion, and one bottle of salad dressing yield the appropriate amounts for a double recipe.