Easy summer tortellini salad. Get ready to make this vibrant pasta salad on repeat. Full of zingy flavors and incredibly easy to make. Just imagine juicy cherry tomatoes together with buttery olives, fresh basil and milky mozzarella, tossed with cheese tortellini, which can trap all that delicious Italian dressing. Combine, stir and enjoy!
This tortellini salad is a true crowd-pleasing side dish. Since it’s made with cherry tomatoes, which taste great year-round, you don’t have to wait until peak tomato season to make it. Delicious for picnics, potlucks and barbecues. Leftovers last for days, which makes it also a great lunch idea.
This pasta salad is extra easy, relaxed and budget-friendly. It calls for fresh tortellini, a cheese filling is my personal favorite, but you could also use prosciutto-filling or spinach with ricotta. The pearl-sized mozzarella balls add a nice chewy bite. But even if you use a large, chopped mozzarella ball, you’ll still end up with winning results.
This tortellini salad recipe is all about layering the flavors. We have the cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh basil, buttery olives and milky mozzarella, plus some grated Parmesan. The dressing is made with sun-dried tomato-oil, which is like a tiny umami bomb, along with balsamic vinegar, garlic, red onion and Italian seasoning… it hits all the right notes of salt, acidity and fat. This one will steal the show.
Let me guide you through the recipe with this step-by-step VIDEO.
RECIPE NOTES
- ultra versatile for picnics, barbecues, potlucks or an easy lunch idea
- use any of your favorite tortellini
- add-ins: spinach, artichokes, roasted pepper, crispy cooked bacon or salami
- instead of black olives, use green olives or capers
- give it a good toss and serve at room temperature
- keep any leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days
- this tortellini salad can be made up to 1 day beforehand, but don’t add the basil yet and refrigerate it overnight. Let the salad sit at room temperature for 20 minutes and toss in the basil just before serving
- if you’re bringing this salad to a potluck, double it. It’s so good that you’re guaranteed to run out quickly
Try These Next
- Red Pesto Pasta Salad with Bacon
- Potato salad with miso dressing
- Corn salad with spicy peanut dressing
Summer Tortellini Salad
Ingredients
Tortellini Salad
- 9 ounces cheese tortellini
- 12 ounces cherry tomatoes - halved
- 3 ounces black olives - chopped, such as kalamata
- 10 sun-dried tomatoes - drained and chopped (oil reserved)
- 9 ounces mozzarella pearls - drained
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
- ½ cup basil leaves
Italian Dressing
- ¼ cup oil from sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 red onion - finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves - mined or grated
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
Instructions
- Cook the tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes, or according to the package directions. Drain well and allow to cool at room temperature.
- In the meantime, halve the cherry tomatoes, chop the olives and sun-dried tomatoes. Finely chop the red onion and mince the garlic.
- Make the dressing, combine the oil with balsamic vinegar, garlic, red onion, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
- Place the cherry tomatoes, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella, basil leaves and Parmesan in a large bowl. Add tortellini and pour the dressing over the pasta. Toss well. Serve at room temperature. Just before serving, taste and adjust salt and pepper. Enjoy!
Video
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