Summertime pasta salad with homemade vegan Italian dressing
Fantastic vegan pasta salad to take to a party and share with a friend. Perfect vegan summer bbq side dish. Grilled vegetables and pasta come together in an easy, homemade vegan Italian dressing. Tastes even better when it’s sat in the fridge for a day.
When the weather starts getting a little hotter, there’s nothing like a delicious grilled veggie pasta salad for dinner. It’s a great way to use up all those veggies that your garden is growing.
This is one of my favorite dishes to make on a hot, muggy summer night. It whips together so easily and won’t make you feel heavy and gross.
This pasta salad is also great to take to a party or bbq. It feeds a crowd really well.
Ingredients
The beauty of this pasta salad is its versatility.
Grilled vegetables – You can use whatever vegetables you love to grill but my favorite are: zucchini and bell peppers since they are abundant in the summer time.
Arugula – I love the peppery kick that this green adds to the salad. Feel free to use kale or spinach if you don’t like arugula.
Tomatoes – Another abundant fruit in the summer. This adds some nice acidity and juiciness to the salad.
Northern beans – You can also use chickpeas. Beans add a nice protein to this pasta salad, without using meat.
Marinated artichoke hearts – This adds a delicious flavor to the pasta salad.
Fresh basil – Fresh herbs level this recipe up. Feel free to use fresh parsley as well.
Pasta – I love using spiral pasta because it collects the dressing in it better than other pasta shapes.
Vegan Italian dressing – You can use a store bought bottle for convenience, but it’s very easy to make it at home. Just use some olive oil, a good vinegar is key (1), lemon juice, mustard, salt and some herbs and spices. Make a big batch of this to have in the fridge all week.
How to make vegan pasta salad
- First cook your pasta. Make sure not to cook too much. Rinse under cool water after it cooks to stop it from over cooking.
- Season and grill your vegetables.
- Make your vegan Italian dressing
- Assemble everything together in a bowl and let it sit for at least an hour in the fridge. Overnight is best.
Recipe tips
- I love using the spiral or bow tie pasta for this but use whatever is your favorite.
- Make sure not to over cook the pasta.
- Once pasta is cooked, rinse immediately with cool water so that the pasta doesn’t continue to cook and become gummy
- If you want an even easier way to make this, use a store bought Italian dressing instead of making it yourself. Just check the ingredients that it doesn’t have cheese in it.
- If you can get your hands on some Violife vegan parmesan, or feta, do so! It tastes so good in this pasta salad
- Season your grilled veggies with some steak seasoning, or just good ol’ plain salt. Whatever you do, don’t leave them bland and unseasoned. Also make sure to brush them with a little olive oil
- If you don’t feel like grilling the vegetables, it works to sauté them as well. They taste amazing if you use a cast iron skillet.
- Top this with some fresh basil if you have it. It tastes amazing.
- This grilled veggie pasta salad tastes even better when it’s had a chance to sit in the fridge for a day. Make this the day before a party or bbq to really let the flavors sink in.
FAQ
How long will pasta salad last in the fridge?
This will last about a week in the fridge, if you don’t eat it all before then. The longer it sits in the fridge, the better it gets because the flavors marinate.
Can I use different vegetables?
Yes, absolutely. This recipe is very versatile. Use whatever your favorite vegetables are. Some other good vegetables to put in this salad are:
- Grilled mushrooms
- Grilled onions
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Green onions
Can I make this gluten free?
Yes! This recipe is very easy to make gluten free. Just use a gluten free pasta. Chickpea or lentil pasta seem to stay more firm and less gummy than brown rice pasta, I’ve noticed. Make sure to not over cook the pasta, as gluten free pasta can become gummy very easily.
Check out these other summertime vegan recipes next:
- Creamy orzo with roasted vegetables
- Kale salad with baked sweet potato and marinated tofu
- Applebee’s vegan chicken oriental salad copycat recipe
- Southwest quinoa salad
- Tomato, cucumber avocado salad
- Easy BBQ tofu
- Vegan summer rolls
- Citrus rainbow salad
- Tofu wrap
Easy vegan pasta salad
Ingredients
Italian dressing
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar (can also use red wine vinegar)
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 clove garlic (pressed or minced)
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp Mrs. Dash seasoning
- 1.5 tsp salt (or salt to taste)
- ¼ cup finely grated Violife vegan parmesan (optional but it tastes really good if you can find this)
- ½ tsp pepper
Pasta salad
- 1 lb bag of pasta – cooked al dente
- 2 small zucchinis
- 1-2 bell peppers
- ½ red onion
- ¼ cup kalamata olives
- ½ cup jarred artichoke hearts
- Handful of cherry tomatoes
- Handful of baby arugula (optional)
- 16 oz can of cannellini or great northern beans – drained and rinsed
- Violife vegan feta cheese (optional but tastes really good in this)
- Top with fresh basil and grated vegan parmesan cheese at the end
Instructions
- Grill or sauté the zucchini, peppers and onions. Tastes really good to season with salt or a steak seasoning. Brush with a little olive oil if grilling.2 small zucchinis, 1-2 bell peppers, ½ red onion
- Cook your pasta, drain and rinse with cool water1 lb bag of pasta – cooked al dente
- Chop up your olives, artichoke hearts and tomatoes. Drain and rinse your white beans. Add them to a large mixing bowl with the cooked pasta and grilled vegetables.¼ cup kalamata olives, ½ cup jarred artichoke hearts, Handful of cherry tomatoes, 16 oz can of cannellini or great northern beans – drained and rinsed, Handful of baby arugula
- Mix together the dressing ingredients in a jar. Shake well, and pour over the pasta salad½ cup olive oil, ¼ cup white wine vinegar, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp sugar, 1 clove garlic, 2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1 tsp Mrs. Dash seasoning, 1.5 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, ¼ cup finely grated Violife vegan parmesan
- Top with some fresh basil and vegan parmesan cheese
Video
Notes
- I love using the spiral or bow tie pasta for this but use whatever is your favorite
- Make sure not to over cook the pasta.
- Once pasta is cooked, rinse immediately with cool water so that the pasta doesn’t continue to cook and become gummy
- If you want an even easier way to make this, use a store bought Italian dressing instead of making it yourself. Just check the ingredients that it doesn’t have cheese in it.
- If you can get your hands on some Violife vegan parmesan, or feta, do so! It tastes so good in this pasta salad
- Season your grilled veggies with some steak seasoning, or just good ol’ plain salt. Whatever you do, don’t leave them bland and unseasoned. Also make sure to brush them with a little olive oil
- If you don’t feel like grilling the vegetables, it works to sauté them as well. They taste amazing if you use a cast iron skillet.
- Top this with some fresh basil if you have it. It tastes amazing.
- This grilled veggie pasta salad tastes even better when it’s had a chance to sit in the fridge for a day. Make this the day before a party or bbq to really let the flavors sink in.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Leave a Reply