Caprese Tortellini Pasta Salad
This tortellini pasta salad is so simple, yet it's packed with the most gorgeous flavour!
Servings: 4 - 5 people
Cost: £2.50 / $3
Equipment
- Medium-Sized Pot & Colander (for cooking pasta)
- Large Salad/Mixing Bowl
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Whisk
- Spatula/Salad Tossers
Ingredients
- 10.5oz / 300g Tortellini, filling of choice (see notes)
- 9oz / 250g Baby Plum or Cherry Tomatoes, halved
- 7oz / 200g Cherry Mozzarella Balls, halved (see notes)
- 1oz / 30g shaved Parmesan
- 4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 tbsp White Balsamic Vinegar (see notes)
- 2 tbsp finely diced Fresh Basil, plus a handful of small basil leaves
- 2 tbsp Pine Nuts, preferably toasted
- 2 small Shallots, very finely diced
- 1 small clove of Garlic, very finely diced
- 1/4 tsp EACH: Salt, Black Pepper
Instructions
- In a large mixing/salad bowl whisk together extra virgin olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, shallots, garlic, 2 tbsp basil and 1/4 tsp salt & pepper. Toss in the tomatoes and leave to marinate for as long as you have time for. I recommend at least an hour, which you can do at room temp. Any longer cover in the fridge (up to overnight).
- Cook the tortellini in salted boiling water (take a minute or so off the packet timings). Drain and gently toss in cold water until completely cool.
- Combine the tortellini with the tomatoes and dressing, then toss in the mozzarella, parmesan, pine nuts and a handful of small basil leaves (or torn large ones).
- Serve up right away or store in the fridge until needed.
Video
Notes
a) Tortellini - I actually use cappelletti here, which is great because it's a little smaller than tortellini. You can really use your favourite filling, granted it pairs well with the flavours of a caprese salad. I often use prosciutto crudo, but spinach & ricotta or even a chicken-based tortellini would work well!
b) Make Ahead - You can make the whole salad ahead of time, it'll just start drying up after a few hours. Which is fine, it'll still taste lovely, you just lose the texture of the dressing. Just tightly store in the fridge until needed.
c) Cherry Mozzarella - You can use regular fresh mozzarella and tear it into chunks if you'd prefer. Bocconcini also works well!
d) White Balsamic Vinegar - If you're in the UK they sell this in Sainsbury's and a couple of other supermarkets. You can use regular balsamic vinegar, it just stains everything that's all. You can use white or red wine vinegar if you have no balsamic on hand, but balsamic is slightly preferable.
e) Calories - Whole recipe divided by 4.
Nutrition
Calories: 574kcal | Carbohydrates: 41.35g | Protein: 24.51g | Fat: 35.07g | Saturated Fat: 12.44g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3.747g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15.995g | Trans Fat: 0.069g | Cholesterol: 77mg | Sodium: 894mg | Potassium: 322mg | Fiber: 2.6g | Sugar: 3.46g | Vitamin A: 1107IU | Vitamin C: 9.5mg | Calcium: 440mg | Iron: 2mg