Italian Pasta Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette

For Pasta Salad:
12 ounce package of uncooked tri-color rotini or cork-screw pasta
1/2 cup pepperoni, diced in small dice
1/2 – 3/4 cup Italian hard salami, cut julienne style
1/2 cup or 4 ounces of provolone cheese, diced
8 sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil, drained well, finely chopped
1/2 of a small red onion, small dice
1/2 of a red bell pepper, small dice
1/2 of a yellow pepper, small dice
1/2 of an orange pepper, small dice
4 ounce can of sliced black olives, drained – I use Kalamat
1/4 cup of minced fresh parsley – I used Italian flat leaf
1/4 cup of freshly grated Parmesan or Grano Padano cheese (good quality)

For the vinaigrette:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard seed
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Make the pasta according to package direction. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Place in a large bowl. Add the diced pepperoni, salami, cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, red onion, bell peppers, olive, parsley and the freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Give it a good toss.

In a small bowl whisk together all of the vinaigrette ingredients. Coat and toss the salad until the salad is fully coated with the vinaigrette. Can be made one day ahead. If making one day ahead you can reserve a little bit of the dressing as the pasta will soak up a lot of the dressing. Toss with the remaining dressing right before you are ready to serve. Serves 8.

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