Trofie Pasta Salad With Tomatoes And Peppers Recipe

Trofie pasta is a really lovely short and thin twisted pasta that goes great in a pasta salad. This recipe features lovely fresh heritage tomatoes and roasted red peppers from a jar - although if you have the extra time, you can easily roast your own and use those! If you're roasting your own peppers, you can drizzle them with a little olive oil and along with a couple of cloves of crushed garlic (if you like), stick them in the oven until they're soft and ready to use. Make sure they cool down before you use them in the salad.

This salad is ready in 30 minutes which means you can knock it up in no time when you're planning a barbecue or getting a buffet ready when you've got a crowd coming round. You can also make it the night before and it'll be fine in the morning if you've kept it in the fridge. Just add the fresh basil before you serve because you don't want it to wilt!

It goes really well with meat like lamb, chicken or beef and is just as lovely with grilled fish for a really great light and fresh dinner. You can just as easily make this as a filling lunch and take it out with you if you're at work or out of the house.

HOW TO MAKE TROFIE SALAD WITH TOMATOES AND PEPPERS

Ingredients

• 250g fresh trofie pasta (or any small pasta of your choice)
• 5tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 290g jar roasted red peppers
• 1 red onion
• 500g heritage tomatoes
• Fresh basil, to serve

Method

1. Cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold, running water then put into a large bowl and toss in the oil and vinegar with a good grinding of sea salt and black pepper.

2. Drain the peppers and cut into thick strips. Finely chop the onion and cut the tomatoes into wedges. Mix all these into the pasta then serve with the basil.