Greek Pasta Salad Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 oz bowtie pasta (or rotini or fusili pasta)
• ½ English cucumber (diced (2 cups))
• 10 oz cherry tomatoes (halved (1 ½ cups))
• 1 bell pepper (any color, seeded and chopped )
• 1 small red onion (chopped (⅓ cup chopped))
• 4 oz crumbled feta (1 cup)
• ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives (or added to taste, halved or coarsely chopped, plus 1 Tbsp of juice from the jar)
• ¼ cup parsley (finely chopped)
• ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 3 garlic cloves (grated or minced)
• 1 tsp fine sea salt (or added to taste)
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• ½ to ⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil

Steps

1. 1

   Cook the pasta in salted water according to the package instructions until it's al dente. Drain in a colander, then rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process and cool the pasta. Drain well, and set it aside.

2. 2

   Make the dressing - Combine all dressing ingredients in the order they are listed in a large measuring cup and whisk to combine (or shake it up in a lidded mason jar).

3. 3

   Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl: pasta, cucumbers, tomato, bell pepper, red onion, feta cheese, kalamata olives and parsley. If the dressing has separated, give it a good shake before drizzling it over the salad. Add a spoonful of juice from Kalamata olives if desired and toss the salad to combine.

4. 4

   Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to meld, or up to 24 hours. Since the pasta will absorb some of the dressing, taste the salad after refrigeration and adjust the seasoning as needed.