Easy Vegan Italian Pasta Salad
This easy vegan Italian pasta salad is packed with veggies. Think juicy cherry tomatoes, salty black olives and sun-dried tomatoes, silky roasted red peppers, tangy marinated artichokes, fine threads of crisp red onion, and just a touch of fresh herbs for a pop of green goodness. A hearty, gluten-free fusilli serves as the perfect base, mingling with the veggies and a zesty Italian vinaigrette in the best of ways. The finishing touch? Heaps of salty vegan parmesan.
Servings: 6 side servings
Ingredients
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup jarred roasted red peppers, julienned
- ½ cup jarred marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
- ¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- ¼ cup quartered and thinly sliced red onion
- Handful flat-leaf parsley and/or basil leaves, minced
- 8 ounces truRoots Organic Ancient Grain Fusilli
- ⅓ cup raw almonds or cashews
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 clove garlic, smashed and peeled
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more for seasoning
- Homemade Italian Dressing (see below) or your favorite store-bought Italian dressing or balsamic vinaigrette, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Bring a pot of well-salted water to a rolling boil. (As they say, your pasta water should be as salty as the sea.)
- Meanwhile, prepare all the vegetables and herbs (i.e., tomatoes through parsley) and add to a large serving bowl.
- Once the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente according to package instructions. Strain.
- Meanwhile, prepare the vegan parmesan. To the bowl of a small food processor, add the nuts, nutritional yeast flakes, garlic clove, and sea salt. Process for 15 seconds, or until ground into a texture that resembles finely grated parmesan cheese.
- Prepare the dressing (recipe below).
- Add the pasta to the serving bowl with the veggies and herb/s.
- Top with as much of the dressing and vegan parmesan cheese as desired (any leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 1 week). (I usually add a little more than half of the homemade dressing recipe and about half of the vegan parmesan.)
- Toss to coat and combine.
- Taste and season with sea salt and black pepper, if desired.
- Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Serve chilled.