15 Minute Caprese Pasta Salad! 

Last week, I shared 5 salad recipes for #VeggiekinsSaladWeek including Caprese Stuffed Avocados and this week I’m kicking off #VeggiekinsPastaWeek with Caprese Pasta Salad! As I mentioned last week, summertime is tomato peak season. Tomatoes are bursting with flavour and it’s the best time to enjoy, especially in fresh dishes like this. Alongside tomatoes, basil is also in season, so paired with vegan mozzarella and pasta of choice, you get the ultimate summer pasta salad. The best part about this recipe is that it takes roughly 15 minutes or less to make, with little effort. The ingredients are simple, and the recipe plays up the natural summer flavours. I’ll also provide a method below to serve this dish warm.

To make, you need only 6 main ingredients. This pasta dish is vegan, gluten free and refined sugar free.

What’s in this Caprese Pasta Salad?

• Gluten free pasta of choice
• Cherry tomatoes
• Fresh basil leaves
• Vegan mozzarella
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt + pepper

Optional other ingredients to consider including

• Balsamic vinaigrette to top
• 2-3 cloves garlic

secrets to success

This Caprese Pasta Salad recipe is fairly loose, so you’ll see some ingredients are described with “handfuls” and “to taste”. It really is up to personal preference and it’s hard to mess up! I would recommend gauging portion size by the number of people enjoying. For example, use 1 serving of pasta per person, and for each person, use a handful of cherry tomatoes as described in the recipe.

While you could make this recipe oil free, I’d highly recommend using a small amount of a tasty extra virgin olive oil. It will not only help to keep the cooked pasta from sticking together, but also acts as the “dressing” if you will, given there is no other sauce in the recipe. Consider the warm option (see recipe below) if you’d prefer oil-free, and use crushed tomatoes to create a sauce. The pasta salad method will definitely end up a little dry without olive oil. Alternatively, you could potentially use balsamic vinaigrette as a sort of sauce to pull together the pasta salad.

For presentation purposes, I rolled my vegan mozzarella into little balls, however the shaping of your cheese is optional.

If you like this recipe, try…

• Creamy Cashew Broccoli Salad
• Vegan “Scallops” on Edamame and Corn Salad
• Radiant Radish Salad with Tamari Citrus Vinaigrette
• Crunchy Asian Kelp Noodle Salad
• Crunchy Rainbow Soba Noodle Salad
• Garden Poké Bowls

If you try this recipe out, tag me on Instagram @veggiekins so I can see your delicious re-creations and feature them! As always, I love when you share your reviews in the comments below, and if you make any fun substitutions, let me know how it worked out below too.

15 Minute Caprese Pasta Salad (vegan, gluten free)

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• Author: Remy
• Total Time: 15 minutes
• Yield: 1-2 servings 1x
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

A delicious, summery Caprese Pasta Salad ready in 15 minutes or less. Vegan, gluten free refined sugar free with an oil free option.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 serving cooked pasta
• handful cherry tomatoes, roughly 1 cup
• handful fresh basil, roughly 1/4 loose cup chiffonaded
• vegan mozzarella to taste (I used miyokos mozzarella)
• salt and pepper to taste
• extra virgin olive oil drizzle

optional

• balsamic vinaigrette to taste
• 2–3 fresh garlic cloves

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Instructions

1. To prepare in pasta salad form, toss cooked pasta, halved cherry tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and enough olive oil to lightly coat pasta in a large mixing bowl. Toss to coat then season with salt and pepper to tase. Add balsamic vinaigrette if desired and enjoy.
2. If you’d like to serve warm, sauté minced garlic cloves in a splash of olive oil until fragrant. Add tomatoes and allow to cook until slightly softened. You can smash them with the back of your spatula to release some of the tomato juices or leave whole. Add pasta, basil, mozzarella and stir to combine. Finally, add salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

I recommend enjoying pasta salad style on the same day. After storing in the fridge, pasta tends to dry out and become a lot firmer in texture.

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 5 minutes
• Category: main dishes

Keywords: pasta, salad, italian, summer, main dishes, gluten free, refined sugar free, dairy free, vegan cheese

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