Vegan Mediterranean Pasta Salad with Arugula & Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
Vegan Mediterranean pasta salad with arugula, tomatoes, zucchini, pine nuts, olives, beans, and an arugula-balsamic dressing. Perfect for hot summer days.
Useful equipment
- mini blender *)
Ingredients
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- 500 g pasta e.g. farfalle or spirelli
- 1 tbsp salt for the pasta cooking water
- 50 g pine nuts 50 g = 4 tbsp. 1.5 tbsp of them are for the dressing
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 zucchini approx. 350 g or 12.3 oz
- 240 g white beans (cooked) approx. 240 g or 8.5 oz drained weight of white beans (e.g. cannellini)
- 100 g (black) pitted olives
- 50 g arugula 50 g = 2 hands full
- 350 g cherry tomatoes
Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
- 1.5 tbsp of the previously roasted pine nuts
- 1 hand full of fresh basil approx. 30 leaves
- 50 g 1.8 oz or approx. 2 handfuls arugula
- 80 ml 70 g or 1/3 cup or 2.7 oz olive oil
- 40 ml 40 g or 2.75 tbsp or 1.35 oz balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1.5 tsp salt
- some fresh pepper
- 1-2 tbsp water to rinse out the blender jug
Instructions
- Bring the water for the pasta to the boil, add salt, and cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet (usually around 10 minutes).
- Toast the 50 g (4 tbsp) pine nuts in a large pan without oil over medium heat until they start to brown. Place 2.5 tbsp of the toasted pine nuts in the salad bowl and 1.5 tbsp in the blender jug for the dressing.
- Cut off the ends of the zucchinis, halve them lengthwise, halve them again if you like, and then cut them into half or quarter slices about 5 mm (0.2 inch) thick.
- In the pan where you fried the pine nuts, fry the zucchinis briefly in 2 tbsp olive oil, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini slices are just beginning to brown (they should not be brown) so that the zucchinis are still crunchy but no longer raw. Add to the salad bowl.
- Meanwhile, chop the cocktail tomatoes and olives (cut both in half) and add to the salad bowl.
- Rinse the beans in a sieve, drain, and add to the salad bowl with the pine nuts, tomatoes, and olives.
- For the dressing, blend all the ingredients (pine nuts, arugula, basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper).
- At the end of the cooking time, pour the pasta into a sieve, rinse with cold water, and place in a salad bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the pasta salad, briefly rinse the blender jug with 1-2 tbsp water if necessary, and pour over the salad.
- Mix everything well.
- I prefer to eat the Mediterranean pasta salad with arugula dressing lukewarm, but it also tastes great cold and well done from the fridge.
Video
Notes
- Pasta: This recipe is also ideal for mixing leftover pasta, e.g. 50 g fusilli, 300 g spirelli, ... Just take a look at the cooking time to see whether it is the same or whether you need to add the pasta to the cooking water a little at a time.
- Beans: You can also use other beans or even chickpeas. Instead of canned beans, you could also soak 100 grams of dried beans in water overnight and cook them the next day for about 45 minutes to 1 hour until soft.
- Tomatoes / zucchini: If the zucchini is smaller - it doesn't matter. Or bigger - also good. And you only have 250 g (8.8 oz) of tomatoes: Also fine. The quantities are approximate.
- Arugula: If you are taking the salad to a party, add the arugula on the spot, or leave it out altogether before it gets soggy.
- Balsamic vinegar: the dressing tastes also very nice with red wine vinegar. You could also use fresh lemon juice (I never tried it in this recipe so far).
Nutrition
Serving: 1portionCalories: 920kcalCarbohydrates: 117gProtein: 25gFat: 40gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 8gMonounsaturated Fat: 24gSodium: 3079mgPotassium: 1077mgFiber: 10gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1419IUVitamin C: 34mgCalcium: 157mgIron: 6mg