Caprese Pasta Salad

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 1/2 cups bite-size fresh mozzarella cheese balls, cut into quarters
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters
• 1/3 cup italian salad dressing (i like using the good seasons packet dressing)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb whole wheat bow tie pasta (i use barilla plus)
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• salt and pepper

Recipe

• 1 toss the mozzarella and cherry tomatoes with the italian dressing. cover and refrigerate. if i'm making this for dinner, i usually get the cheese and tomatoes in the fridge to marinate a few hours before i plan to assemble the salad.
• 2 in a skillet on low heat, heat the olive oil, garlic and crushed red pepper. cook on low for 5-10 minutes allowing the garlic to soften (but not brown) and infuse the oil.
• 3 meanwhile, boil the pasta. add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss to coat. set the pasta mixture aside to cool.
• 4 once the pasta is cooled, add the cheese and tomatoes along with the dressing marinade. season the salad with salt and pepper and top with 3 tablespoons fresh basil.