This easy summer vegetable pasta salad is full of fresh veggies topped with a delicious homemade balsamic vinegar dressing. It is the perfect summer dinner!
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Pin RecipeI absolutely love summertime when my garden is overflowing with vegetables. I can never decide which veggies to highlight in my meals each day—they all just look so good! Will it be Garlic Shrimp with Blistered Tomatoes and Linguine or should I use zucchini to make Zucchini Boats for dinner?
Luckily, this summer veggie pasta salad uses quite a few of my favorite garden goodies so I don’t have to choose.
Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad Recipe
This easy summer vegetable pasta salad is made with cherry tomatoes, zucchini, broccoli, yellow squash, and red bell pepper. I add freshly chopped basil for a pop of green color and intense summer flavor. Basil is the ultimate summer herb!
A little bit of feta makes the vegetable pasta salad recipe have a creamy texture and a perfectly salty taste. The honey balsamic dressing ties the whole recipe together, making it truly irresistible. I know that this simple summer vegetable pasta salad recipe will become one of your favorite recipes this season. Now, the big question is, will you eat your healthy summer vegetable pasta salad cold or do you like it better warm? This is another thing that I just can’t decide!
(If you love satisfying pasta salad recipes, try my Tortellini Pasta Salad next! Want to keep it light? Skip the pasta and make Summer Salad instead.)
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Ingredients for Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Honey
- Dried basil
- Garlic – One clove of garlic will make about a teaspoon of minced garlic for this recipe.
- Salt and pepper
- Bowtie pasta – I love using multi-colored bowtie pasta to add even more color to the veggie pasta salad.
- Cherry tomatoes – If you do not have cherry tomatoes, chop one large heirloom tomato. Heirloom tomatoes tend to be sweeter and have a similar flavor to cherry tomatoes.
- Zucchini – I like to keep the skin of the zucchini on to add color to the salad and keep some of those great nutrients.
- Broccoli – Try to cut the broccoli into pieces that will fit in your mouth with just one bite.
- Yellow squash – Just like with the zucchini, keep the skin of the yellow squash on!
- Red bell peppers – Any color bell pepper will work, but red peppers are the sweetest.
- Fresh basil
- Feta cheese – Adding feta is completely optional, but I love how it makes the salad a little bit creamy. It also adds a nice, salty taste that is delicious with all the veggies.
Variations
Here are a few ingredient substitutions and recipe variations that will work well.
- Add 1 cup of chopped snap peas to the pasta salad. I like to use snap peas at the beginning of the summer when they are in season.
- Let the veggies sit in the marinade overnight. This will soften some of the crunchier vegetables and allow them to absorb all the flavors of the dressing.
- Use any shape of pasta to make this salad. I like to use smaller kinds of pasta that are bite-sized.
- Serve the summer veggie pasta salad warm or cold. Both ways are delicious!
How to Make Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad
- Make the dressing: Add all of the ingredients for the dressing into a large bowl and whisk them together.
- Marinate the veggies: Add all of the chopped vegetables to the bowl with the dressing. Toss the veggies in the dressing, then let them sit while you make the pasta.
- Cook the pasta: Cook the bowtie pasta according to the package directions. Drain the pasta.
- Mix: Add the cooked pasta to the bowl with the marinated vegetables. Toss everything together well, then cover the bowl and chill.
- Add the cheese: Mix in the feta cheese right before you are ready to serve the summer pasta salad, then enjoy!
Quick Tip
The flavor of this summer vegetable pasta salad actually gets better as it sits. I like to make the salad the day before I plan to enjoy it and let it marinate overnight. The noodles and veggies will absorb more of the balsamic vinaigrette and taste even better the next day!
How to Store Summer Veggie Pasta Salad
Keep the simple summer vegetable pasta salad in an airtight container in the fridge. The pasta salad will keep for about 4-5 days. You can enjoy the salad cold, straight out of the fridge, or heated up in the microwave.
Serving Suggestions
Pair this summer vegetable pasta salad with Grilled Chicken Kabobs, Easy Grilled BBQ Chicken, or Easy Marinated Grilled Chicken Tenders for a simple, healthy dinner.
FAQs
Yes! Making pasta salad a day in advance will allow the flavors of the vegetables and dressing to develop. It is definitely a good idea to make it early and let it chill overnight.
You can rinse the pasta after it has cooked to cool down the noodles quickly. This will ensure the noodles stop cooking and don’t turn mushy. Rinsing also washes away any starchy water that may still be on the noodles.
Tossing the noodles in the dressing right after they are done cooking will prevent sticking. The dressing will coat the noodles in oil which will keep them separate and not sticky.
More Easy Salad Recipes
Pasta
Bow Tie Pasta Salad
Soups and Salads
Cucumber Salad
Soups and Salads
Waldorf Salad
Recipes
Fresh Corn Salad
Recipes
Pea Salad
Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teasoon minced garlic
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pasta Salad
- 12 ounces bowtie pasta
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 broccoli crown, cut into small florets
- 1 yellow squash, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeds removed, diced
- 1/2 cup freshly chopped basil
- 1 cup feta cheese crumbles (optional)
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients for the dressing into a large bowl. Whisk well, blending the honey with the oil and vinegar.
- Add all of the diced veggies to the bowl with the dressing. Stir to coat the vegetables in the dressing.
- Let the bowl of marinated veggies sit while you cook the bowtie pasta according to the package directions, boiling for about 7-10 minutes to soften the noodles.
- Drain the pasta water, then add the cooked pasta to the bowl with the veggies and dressing. Toss everything together well, coating the noodles in the dressing.
- Cover the bowl of pasta salad with plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour or longer.
- Add the feta cheese, if using, right before you are ready to serve the pasta salad. Enjoy cold!
Notes
- Skip the feta cheese for a dairy-free pasta salad.
- Use freshly chopped parsley in place of basil for a different, herby flavor.
- Any shape of short pasta noodles will work in place of bowtie noodles.
