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3 Ingredient Pasta Salad

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This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

When it comes to potato and pasta salad I’m a pretty simple gal.  So, it’s no surprise that the pasta salad I grew up on was nothing but pasta and Italian dressing.  This was how my grandma made pasta salad for as long as I can remember.  And when I started experimenting with different recipes I just couldn’t shake the old standby.  It just doesn’t get easier than 1 ingredient, besides the pasta of course.

Then one day I made this pasta salad for an end of the year picnic.  I especially like this for a picnic because it has no mayo, sour cream, or cream cheese in it so it doesn’t need to be refrigerated.  A friend mentioned in passing that it would be great with some mozzarella.  And it was like fireworks and angels singing.  Or something.  So the very next time I made it I added some chunks of mozzarella when it was still warm.  They got soft but not melted because they were in chunks and it was soooo good.

This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

And I ate it happily this way for another few years until another friend suggested adding pepperoni.  I’m starting to realize I have some pretty genius foodie friends.  And while this pasta salad isn’t at all complicated with it’s 3 ingredients, it’s absolutely delicious!  Could you make your own Italian dressing?  Of course!  But then you would be a fancier person than me because I use the stuff straight out of the bottle.  And the next time you get invited to a picnic, pot luck, or backyard bbq whip this stuff up and enjoy an easy side dish that won’t give you food poisoning from sitting out in the hot summer sun 😉

But this year I’m kicking off bbq season with something extra awesome! I’ve teamed up with around 50 of my blogging friends to bring you #CookoutWeek – an entire week filled with amazing summer recipes perfect for your next cookout, along with a fun giveaway, courtesy of some awesome sponsors! {Holla to the free stuff!}

It’s super easy to enter, and one lucky winner will get:

Y’all…it’s a prize pack worth over $300! Plus it’s pretty much everything you need to host an awesome cookout this summer. Thank you so much to all of the wonderful sponsors listed above, who have made #CookoutWeek possible.

Enter below for your chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

Meaghan

This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

3 Ingredient Pasta Salad

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 oz large shell pasta, cooked
  • 2 oz pepperoni, cut into strips
  • 4 oz mozzarella, cut into 1/2 inch chunks*
  • 1/2 cup Italian dressing

Instructions

  1. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl, mixing until well coated, and chill for 1-2 hours.
  2. Serve cold.

This 3 ingredient pasta salad is perfect for your next picnic or pot luck with fresh Italian dressing, creamy mozzarella, and spicy pepperoni.

Don’t forget to check back throughout the week with all of the bloggers participating to get some yummy #CookoutWeek recipes. Here’s the full list of participating bloggers:

The PinterTest Kitchen2 Cookin’ MamasA Day in the Life on the Farmaddicted 2 recipesAimee Broussard & Co.Amy’s Cooking AdventuresAngels Home Sweet HomesteadBakin’ and EggcerptsBalancing MotherhoodBody RebootedCheese Curd In ParadiseCindy’s Recipes and WritingsCook With 5 KidsCook. Craft. Love.Cookaholic WifeCricket’s ConfectionsCrumb: A Food BlogEat, Drink, Be Healthy!Everyday EileenFairyburgerFood ParsedGet the Good Stuff!Goodie GodmotherHezzi-D’s Books and CooksHome in the Finger LakesJennifer CooksJessie WeaverKate’s Recipe BoxLife on FoodLittle House Big AlaskaLittle Scratch KitchenMaking MiraclesMoore or Less CookingRhubarb and HoneySavvy In The KitchenSeduction in the KitchenSimple Food 365Style IslandThanks for Cookin’!The Food Hunter’s Guide To CuisineThe Hungary Buddha Eats the WorldThe Spiffy CookieThe Weekday GourmetThis is How I CookTramplingroseVintage KittyWest Via Midwest

Brian Jones

Sunday 3rd of July 2016

Sometimes less really can be more, simple great flavours and a quick turn around time are always a huge positive :D

Meaghan

Tuesday 5th of July 2016

Agree! This is one of my favorite things to make a big batch of so I can eat it throughout the week when I don't have the energy for anything but leftovers :)

~Meaghan

Byron Thomas

Tuesday 28th of June 2016

Hey, Southern Belle! I do declare that I love me a simple pasta salad! I think sometimes we get so caught up with trendy ingredients and complicated recipes that we forget that simple things in life are better - and that includes food! I've been on a big food kick lately which is allowing me to explore a minimum number of ingredients which transform into something yummy - like this pasta salad! Bravo!

Meaghan

Wednesday 29th of June 2016

Agreed! I love when we can just keep it simple and classy and down home. Sorry, quinoa my pasta salad has just 3 ingredients.

~Meaghan