In case you hadn’t heard, it’s hot outside. While I’m not complaining because I’ll gladly take the heat over the cold, it does make things like make dinner a bit of a challenge. I find we’re not as hungry when it’s so hot and I don’t want to heat up the kitchen during the heat of the afternoon. We’ve been grilling quite a bit and trying out different salads. I recently came across a recipe in my recipe box for a pizza pasta salad. It was super yummy and the perfect meal for a hot summer day. Paired with some bread or crackers and voila! Dinner is served.
Pizza Pasta Salad
- 1 (16 oz) package of wagon wheel pasta
- 3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 6 mushrooms, sliced (the majority of us don’t like mushrooms, so I omit. Shh, don’t tell Ty)
- 1-2 cups thinly sliced fresh spinach
- 3 ounces pepperoni, thinly sliced (I used the mini pepperonis)
- 3 slices (3 oz) Canadian bacon
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 7 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse under cold water; drain and place in large salad bowl. Add tomatoes, green onions, mushrooms, spinach, pepperoni, Canadian bacon and cheeses; toss to combine.
Whisk together remaining ingredients and pour over pasta.