Martini Pasta Salad
Hello…and see you later! This will be my last post before summer recess. I’m grateful to have some of my peeps home to experiment on and with, so that come September I’ll have plenty of new and exciting recipes to share with you all. But before I go, I’ll share a hit from last summer. This recipe came from my dear friend, Tik Tok and was based on my 2023-24 cocktail obsession, an extra dirty gin martini.
Martini Pasta Salad crossed my radar while I was looking for a side that would round out a casual dinner that I was hosting. I was immediately intrigued. It features all of the essential ingredients of a perfect dirty martini, and then some: olives, blue cheese, brine, plus lemon, parsley, pine nuts and a good douse of Italian dressing. I knew that there was no possible way for this combination to disappoint.
As expected, the resulting dish is flavorful, aesthetically pleasing, and a departure from more traditional pasta salads. It is also super easy to throw together (I mean, bottled dressing?) and great to make-ahead. It’s a fabulous accompaniment to steaks on the grill and thickly sliced, bright red beefsteak tomatoes. Is your mouth watering? Enjoy, have a fantastic summer and I’ll see you on the flip side!
Martini Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb short pasta I prefer a flatter shape as opposed to a tube-like penne or ziti
- 1 c parsley roughly chopped
- 2 c castelvetrano olives pitted and smashed
- 1/2 c olive brine
- 1 c crumbled blue cheese
- 1/4 c toasted pine nuts
- 1 med lemon zested and juiced
- 2/3 c favorite Italian dressing
Instructions
- Cool pasta until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and rinse off with cool water until its cool to the touch.
- Add pasta to a large bowl, along with parsley, olives, olive brine, blue cheese crumbles, toasted pine nuts, lemon zest, lemon juice, and Italian dressing. Add a pinch of flaky salt and some cranks of fresh cracked pepper. Toss to distribute ingredients and enjoy.
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