by Tara
A week or so ago a lovely and talented friend posted a beautiful picture on Instagram of "Ravioli Pasta Salad" in the works. She had mushrooms and olives and tomatoes and red onions and mozzarella and broccoli and salami all chopped up together, and it looked delicious. And inspired me.
Since I'm still trying to eat fewer carbs and legumes, I put together a whole mess of stuff in a bowl, and, man, was it delicious. And easy. And delicious. So good, seriously.
Italian Salad
(Photo of my second helping)
Ingredients:
-Pepperoni, approx. 16-20, quartered
-Salami, approx. 16-20, quartered
-Tomatoes, 1 large or about 12, quartered
-Broccoli, one head
-Mushrooms, 8 oz, sliced
-Red Onion, half of one large or one small, sliced
-Green Olives, about half a can, halved
-Pepproncinis, about 12, halved or quartered
-Mozzarella, about 4 oz, shredded
-Crushed Red Pepper to taste
-Garlic salt to taste
-Minced or pressed garlic (about 2 cloves or 1 tsp)
-Extra virgin olive oil, about 1 tsp for sauteeing veggies, plus additional for dressing
-Balsamic vinegar for dressing
Directions:
1. Steam saute broccoli with garlic and crushed red pepper. Add to big bowl.
2. Saute mushrooms with red onions in olive oil. Add garlic salt and crushed red pepper to taste. Add to big bowl.
3. Add all other veggies and meat to big bowl and stir up to mix.
4. Top each serving with shredded mozzarella and oil/vinegar to taste.
5. Pour a large glass of red wine to go with your meal and enjoy!
This would be such a versatile dish for different tastes and preferences. If you want to add pasta or some sort of sauce, go ahead! Garbanzo beans would be a delicious addition! No cheese, different peppers? Go for it! Also, since I just sort of threw a bunch of stuff into a bowl, it would be really easy to make the dish smaller or larger depending on your household size.
What's your favorite inspired concoction?
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