Each summer my family used to have big, family picnics with extended family that we would only see once a year at that picnic. Some of these people didn’t even make the cut for weddings and funerals. But, massive family potluck picnics at the local forest preserve? They were there! And the one dish that we would always have in spades was pasta salad.
An Italian American staple dish
As an Italian American, pasta salad is a staple at all of our family celebrations – including all those celebrations outside the big ol’ family picnic. Birthdays, Christenings, baby showers, wedding showers, the 4th of July, Memorial Day, Labor Day, etc. If there is a family gathering to be had, pasta salad is always on the menu.
This was specifically true in the summer. In our family, pasta is a year-round thing so it’s always nice to have a version that feels summer ready. Summer pasta salads always feel a bit lighter than their fall and winter counterparts with heavy sauces. You can find a delicious fall/winter pasta {HERE}.
So, in celebration of summer family picnics of yesteryear, and really in celebration of summertime and my family, I wanted to share a beautiful pasta salad recipe with you today.
Is this the true family pasta salad recipe?
Is this the pasta salad that’s at all our Italian America family bashes? No. Mainly because there is no standard recipe in my family for pasta salad. It’s really whatever my aunt (whichever of the 7 aunts) decided to throw in the bowl that day.
However, we do have some standard favorite things and I’ve combined a few of them to make my version of our family’s favorite pasta salad. And I’ve topped it off with an incredible homemade Italian dressing that is a staple in our home.
It starts with the noodle
When it comes to pasta salads, there’s two noodles we most often use in our family; Rotini and Tortellini. It’s almost always one or the other. Every now and then someone will go with Bow Tie, but If you bring a pasta salad with another kind of noodle, you’re going to get funny looks.
Fresh vegetables are always a must. In our family we always add peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and more. Sometimes broccoli makes an appearance. Every now and then spinach is added in. Black olives are always a big hit too. In my Rotini pasta salad, I decided to use and of that and banana peppers.
The final musts are a meat and cheese. Often my family uses pepperoni, but I decided to use Genoa Salami in my version.
As for the cheese, can you ever go wrong with mozzarella? No, you can’t, so toss some of that in too. And while we’re at it, I added plenty of parmesan to my homemade Italian dressing.
Lastly, I always like to add in some fresh herbs on every recipe I make. This one gets a healthy dose of parsley.
Then you can serve it on it’s own, as a side dish or even over greens. I love to serve this over arugula and spinach.
Homemade Italian Dressing
Sadly, my extended family often uses bottled dressing on their pasta salads. I get it. It’s easier. But take my advice. DO NOT MISS THE DRESSING IN THIS RECIPE!
The dressing is truly what pulls any pasta salad recipe together and makes it all sing. This simple homemade dressing will make you wonder why you’ve been using store bought, ever. It’s our go-to dressing now at home. Or at least the go-to Italian dressing. My Irish husband always prefers ranch. What a weirdo. 🙂 Although, that weirdo ate three helpings of this at dinner.
Thank you so much for following along today, friends! You can find the full, printable recipe for my Rotini Pasta Salad below and I hope you love it. I’d love to hear about some of your family summer traditions too in the comments!
For more pasta recipes, click {HERE} and for all our homemade recipes from the farmhouse, click {HERE}. I hope you’ll visit us again!

Rotini Pasta Salad with homemade Italian dressing
Ingredients
Pasta Salad ingredients
- 12 - 16 oz. Rotini Noodles, cooked and drained
- 3/4 cup Genoa Salami, chopped You will want just under half a pound.
- 1 1/4 cup orange pepper, chopped
- 3/4 cup banana peppers, chopped I use mild, but you can use a spicier version if you like.
- 1 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese I like to use the small mozzarella cheese balls but you can use whatever kind you like!
- 1 1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup parsley. chopped
- 1 6 oz can black olives, sliced
- 2 large cucumbers, chopped
Homemade Italian Dressing Ingredients
- 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil Use a good, quality olive oil for this.
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 2.5 Tbsp. lemon juice
- 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 1.5 tsp. dried basil
- 1.5 tsp. dried parsley
- 1.5 tsp. garlic powder
- 1.5 tsp. onion powder
- 3/4 tsp. table salt
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1/4 tsp. paprika
- 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
Instructions
- Bring salted water to a boil and then cook the pasta according to package directions.
- While the pasta cooks, chop your vegetable ingredients.
- Drain the pasta and then let it cool for 30 minutes - 1 hour.
- To make the dressing, combine all the dressing ingredients in a canning jar with the lid or a dressing jar. Mix by shaking. Refrigerate until needed. Shake to mix again if needed.
- Add in all the chopped ingredients to a large bowl with the pasta. Add in the dressing. Mix well and serve.
I love pasta salad. For me, it screams summer. I have been looking for a new dressing. I can’t wait to try this one out. Thanks for sharing.
This is one of my favorite versions of pasta salad. I feel like I could eat it through the screen.
I do love pasta salad! This one looks amazing. Perfect for the summer or anytime!
Pasta salads are perfect summer dishes. I love bringing them to potlucks
Pasta salad is my favorite! I just started making my own Italian dressing as well! I’ll be trying this one soon!
Woot! Nothing beats really good pasta salad. It’s one of my favorite sides. I’ll have to give this recipe a try.
I’m a huge fan of pasta salad’s, I can’t wait to try this recipe.
That is a delicious looking pasta salad! I love your homemade Italian dressing too. I will make a big batch of that so I can have it anytime I want to make a salad.
I love making this. I have made something very similar before. It is so good. Now I want to make it again.
Oh wow does this pasta salad look amazing. Love all the fresh ingredients and the dressing sounds superb.
Fresh herbs and veggies make the salad a delicious adventure. Besides, these things you grow in your garden become a center of the conversation.
Great dish to bring to picnic or share at cookouts. We’ll be making this all summer long.. Thank you for sharing.
Homemade dressings are the way to go! I love a good rotini pasta salad recipe for the summer and entertaining.
The pasta salad looks so delicious and healthy. The dressing sounds great too!
That looks so good and easy to make. I will make it tomorrow!
I haven’t tried Rotini before, I always go for the bow tie, maybe it’s about time I try this.
We love pasta salads at home. I’m definitely making this salad this weekend.
What I do like most about pasta salad is that it is already a complete meal on its own.
Wow, this pasta salad looks delicious and healthy. I will def try this at home. Thanks!
This pasta salad looks great!
I love pasta salads. This looks absolutely delicious and super easy to make for dinner and family get togethes.
We love pasta salad, but I don’t make it that often. I need to try your dressing recipe!
This sounds crazy good and perfect for summer!
I love to eat pasta salad. I’ll have to give this recipe a try as well.
Pasta salad is so yummy and your pictures look really dope
This looks really yummy. The dressing sounds great too. Homemade dressings can taste so much nicer.
I love a good pasta salad, espeically in the summer. It’s fun to have one ready for summer lunches.
I love the tangy taste of Italian dressing. Really goes well with pasta and salad. I would love to try this homemade recipe.
Oh yum! This Rotini pasta salad looks so delicious! Love those colorful shots too ❤️ I can’t wait to try this recipe for my fam 😍
Yum. I’ve never made pasta salad, but this recipe is convincing me to try!
Such a rich and delicious salad! It looks really amazing!
Just saved your recipe. I love a good pasta salad and I can’t wait to try this. Bet it’s delish!
Pasta salad is a family favorite, especially during summer. Fresh cheese and home grown cherry tomatoes really do the trick. Looking forward to making some soon. cheers.
Sounds like the perfect summer salad. Love those mini mozzarella balls!
I made your recipe for a ladies’ meet-up here in Portugal. They all loved it!