Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Fredda

Pasta fredda (aka pasta salad) made with a good sun-dried tomato and ricotta sauce, fresh cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, olives and arugula. It's simple, easy and suited to summer lunches in the sun!

We love a pasta salad in the summer. It's suited to picnics, trips to the beach and BBQs, plus they are so easy to prep in advance.

This one is 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 we've called this a pasta salad, it can also be served hot. We'd omit the arugula (rocket) as it'll wilt.

We'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

• 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, cut a regular ball into cubes.
• Olives – We like to use black olives, and kalamata are easiest for us to find, but use ones you love (black or green).
• Lemon – this is optional; it adds freshness, but it's 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.

We let our 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 we rinse our pasta?

We 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. 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 good 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 good in a pasta salad)
• Pecorino Romano (a great swap for Parmigiano)
• Tuna (stir this through after the sauce)
• Burrata or stracciatella instead of mozzarella (we'd dollop this on top when serving)
• Cubed cheese instead of mozzarella (fontina, provolone, caciocavallo, scamorza, etc).

More good summer pastas to try

Pasta

Zucchini Shrimp Pasta Salad

Pasta

Orzo Pasta Salad with Grilled Summer Vegetables

Pasta

Summer Tuna Pasta Sauce

Pasta

No Cook Tomato Pasta Sauce

Ingredients

Makes 6 servings

• 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

Method

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

2. 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.

3. 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).

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. 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.

Kitchen notes

• Adding all the sauce at once We 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. We 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.