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Pasta fredda (aka pasta salad) made with a delicious sun-dried tomato and ricotta sauce, fresh cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, olives and arugula. It’s simple, easy and perfect for summer lunches in the sun!
I love a pasta salad in the summer. It’s perfect for picnics, trips to the beach and BBQs, plus they are so easy to prep in advance.
This one is very simple yet full of flavour. The sauce is a homemade sun-dried tomato paste mixed with ricotta; it’s so good it’s hard not to eat it straight from the bowl.
And although I’ve called this a pasta salad, it can also be served hot. I’d just omit the arugula (rocket) as it’ll wilt.
I’ve also included lots of ways to adapt this depending on what you have in your fridge, it’s a great way to use up leftovers. Enjoy!
Ingredient notes
Pin this now to find it later
Pin It- Pasta – we used a shape called fusilli bucati corti, which is a spring/spiral shape and great for a sauce like this. Others that would work well are regular fusilli, mezze maniche (short rigatoni) or penne.
- Sun-dried tomatoes – look for tomatoes jarred in oil and preferably marinated in herbs for extra flavour.
- Bocconcini mozzarella – little bite-sized balls of mozzarella are great for salads, but if you can’t find them, just cut a regular ball into cubes.
- Olives – I like to use black olives, and kalamata are easiest for me to find, but use ones you love (black or green).
- Lemon – this is optional; it adds freshness, but it’s just a squeeze, so it can be left out if you don’t have it.
- Arugula – if you don’t like the bitterness, then baby spinach is a great alternative.
Sauce consistency
The sun-dried tomato and ricotta mixture is a thick paste; it’s easier to loosen it with reserved pasta water so it coats the pasta well.
I let my pasta almost cool completely before adding the rest of the sauce, and adjust it with more pasta water until the pasta is coated well.
Should I rinse my pasta?
I always say no to rinsing unless you are in a rush. Rinsing removes starch and flavour from the pasta, plus it makes your pasta wet, as cold water won’t evaporate quickly like hot, drained pasta.
To cool down your pasta quicker, you can lay it out on a tray in an even layer. Just make sure it’s coated in a little sauce or olive oil to stop it sticking.
Make it your own (variations)
When it comes to pasta salad, the variations are endless, and it’s a great way to use up what you have in your fridge or pantry. Here are some other delicious options to add to your salad.
- Marinated artichokes (chopped or in quarters)
- Jarred red peppers (roughly chopped or sliced)
- Pine nuts (great for crunch and added texture)
- Fresh basil or parsley
- Grilled vegetables (always delicious in a pasta salad)
- Pecorino Romano (a great swap for Parmigiano in this recipe)
- Tuna (stir this through after the sauce)
- Burrata or stracciatella instead of mozzarella (I’d dollop this on top when serving)
- Cubed cheese instead of mozzarella (fontina, provolone, caciocavallo, scamorza, etc).
More delicious summer pastas to try
If you’ve tried this sun-dried tomato pasta or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.
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Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Fredda
Ingredients
- 2 cups (230g/8oz) short pasta , (we used fusilli bucati corti)
- 1 packed cup 170g sun-dried tomatoes jarred in oil, (drained weight)
- 1 garlic clove
- lemon juice, (just a squeeze)
- 1/4 cup (50g) ricotta
- 5 oz (140g) fresh cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 140 g (5oz) mozzarella bocconcini
- Parmigiano Reggiano, for serving
- 1 cup (250ml) reserved pasta water
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
- Meanwhile, add the drained sun-dried tomatoes, 1 clove of garlic and ricotta to a food processor (or use an immersion blender) and blitz to a thick paste. If it’s too thick, add some of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes to help loosen it. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, stir and set aside.
- Before draining the pasta, reserve around 1 cup (250ml) of pasta water. Drain and add the pasta to a large mixing bowl. Add around ¼ of the sun-dried tomato paste and a splash of water to the pasta and stir until coated (this is to stop it sticking).
- Add around ¼ cup (60ml) of pasta water to the remaining sauce and stir until it resembles a looser thick sauce rather than a paste.
- Let the pasta cool for 15-20 minutes, then add the remaining sauce and stir through. Add more pasta water if needed. Taste for seasoning and add any salt if needed.
- Add the fresh cherry tomatoes, olives, arugula (rocket) and mozzarella and stir until well combined. Top the shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano, black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
Notes
- Adding all the sauce at once – I like to wait until the pasta has cooled before adding the majority of the sauce, as it can dry out when the pasta is hot. You do need to add a little sauce or olive oil to the pasta when it’s hot to stop it from sticking.
- Mozzarella bocconcini – these are small bite-sized balls. If you can’t find them, you can cut a regular ball of mozzarella into cubes. I love mozzarella di bufula DOP for quality and flavour.
- Exact measurements – you don’t have to follow the exact measurements for the additional ingredients (olives, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella and arugula/rocket) you can add more or less to taste.
- Storage – the pasta salad will keep well for up to 3 days in the fridge.
Helpful Info for All Recipes
- I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise
- When I use canned or jarred tomatoes of any kind I always use Cirio or Mutti brands for the best results and flavour.
- All vegetables are medium sized unless stated otherwise
- All recipes are tested and developed using a fan (convection) oven
- Find out more about how nutrition is calculated.
- Check out our must have Italian Pantry Staples.
- You can also find all our Essential Kitchen Tools for Italian Cooking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
