A pasta salad can make a delicious lunch, or light supper – ideal on hot summer days. The key to a good pasta salad is choosing the right pasta shape: long pasta like tagliatelle doesn’t work well at all, as it goes floppy. One of the best varieties to use is fusilli - those spiral twirls of pasta keep their shape well when cold and make the dish look appealing.
This quick and easy recipe for a tasty Italian pasta salad comes from Salads (pub. Murdoch Book, £4.99). This handy little book is packed with all sorts of ideas for salads, and they're certainly not dull: there are substantial salads, such as the one made with spicy lamb and noodles; there's a delicate salad of feta, cucumber and mint; and unusual recipes too, such as scallop salad with saffron dressing. This recipe for Fusilli Salad, which appears here with permission, includes a Sherry Vinaigrette dressing which adds bite to the dish.
Fusilli Salad with Sherry Vinaigrette - Recipe
Ingredients – Serves 6
- 300g (10 ½ oz) fusilli
- 250g (9 oz) cauliflower florets
- 125ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) olive oil
- 16 slices pancetta
- 10 g (½ oz) small sage leaves
- 100g (3 ½ oz/ ? cup) pine nuts, toasted
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped red Asian shallots
- 1 ½ tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 1 small red chilli, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 teaspoon soft brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 handful flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, finely chopped
- 35g (1 ¼ oz / ? cup) shaved parmesan cheese
Method
- Cook the fusilli in a large saucepan of rapidly boiling, salted water for 12 minutes, or until al dente. Drain and refresh under cold water until it is cool. Drain well. Blanch the cauliflower florets in boiling water for 3 minutes, then drain and cool.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and cook the pancetta for 2 minutes, or until crisp. Drain on crumpled paper towels.
- Add 1 tablespoon of oil and cook the sage leaves for 1 minute or until crisp. Drain on paper towels. In a bowl, combine the pasta, pine nuts and cauliflower.
- Heat the remaining olive oil, add the shallots and cook for 2 minutes, or until soft. Remove from the heat then add the vinegar, chilli, garlic, brown sugar, orange juice and parsley. Pour the warm dressing over the pasta and toss to combine.
- Place the salad in a serving bowl. Crumble the pancetta over the top and scatter with sage leaves and shaved parmesan. Serve warm.
Try this recipe for Artichoke, Proscuitto and Rocket Salad.
