Italian Deli Pasta Salad with Pesto Ranch Dressing
This flavorful pasta salad serves a crowd or serves your lunchbox for the week. There’s protein from the chickpeas, pops of creamy mozzarella, salty salami, briney olives, and a hint of tang from pepperoncini. Plus an easy dressing hack that will have you craving it on everything.
Servings: 12
Ingredients
- ½ lb. mini farfalle or 1 lb. regular farfalle pasta
- 2 tablespoons EVOO
- 12 oz. cherry tomatoes halved
- ½ lb. Genoa salami chopped
- ½ cup pepperoncini chopped
- ½ cup chopped castelvetrano olives or kalamata
- 8 oz. mozzarella pearls drained
- 1 15 oz. can chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1 cup of your favorite store bought ranch dressing
- 6 tablespoons store bought basil pesto
- Zest of ½ lemon
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill optional
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add the pasta to the pot and cook to al dente. Drain, rinse (needed for cold pasta dishes), spread on a sheet pan, toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil and allow to cool while you prep remaining ingredients.
- While pasta cooks, in a small bowl, mix together ranch dressing and pesto, set aside. Prep all salad ingredients, and add everything to a large bowl. Add cooled pasta and 1 cup of the ranch pesto mixture, toss gently until dressing is evenly mixed in. Season with a sprinkle of kosher salt and several grinds of freshly cracked black pepper.
- Chill in the fridge in an airtight container for an hour or up to 3 days. Allow to sit at room temp for 30 minutes before serving for maximum flavor.
Notes
This is a great no heat required packable lunch! Use what you have on hand or those remnants from your fridge… Like leftover rotisserie chicken, pepperoni, cubed cheese, shredded parm, chopped red peppers or celery. Make it your own and make it work for your family! Use the extra dressing on sandwiches, salads, or as a dip for veggies.