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Italian BMT Chopped Salad

Recipe

This twist on a chopped salad is filling and satisfying.

Serves:  4 people | Prep time: 20 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutes

Italian | Main | Cardiff Mum

Ingredients

  • Italian Antipasto Meat Selection
  • 400g Penne Pasta
  • 250g Cherry Tomatoes
  • 1 Red Pepper, Sliced
  • 1 Red Onion
  • 125g Fresh Mozzarella
  • 1 Handful Fresh Basil, Chopped
  • Olives (Olives And Fresh Chillies Are Optional)
  • 20g Grated Parmesan
  • 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
  • Salt
  • Black Pepper
  • 2 Whole Bulbs Garlic, Roasted
  • 1 Tablespoon Honey
  • 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
  • 50ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
  2. Cut off the end of the garlic bulb, drizzle some oil into the cloves, wrap in foil and place in the oven for 30 minutes.
  3. Add the tomatoes and pepper to a baking dish, drizzle with oil and place in the oven for 25 minutes. Add the Italian meats to separate baking dish and bake for 15 minutes until crispy.
  4. Place the pasta in boiling, salted water and cook as per packet instructions.
  5. To a jug, add the dressing ingredients (without the garlic as that’s roasting) and mix.
  6. Chop up an onion, the fresh mozzarella ball and basil.
  7. Remove the Italian meats from the oven, add them to a chopping board and chop up into crispy bits and set aside.
  8. Remove the garlic from the oven and use the back of a knife to squeeze the soft, jammy cloves out of them (if it's not super soft and the cloves come out whole, you should be able to mash them up with a fork). Add this garlic to the dressing and mix well.
  9. Drain the pasta, add it to a large salad bowl, add the basil, onion, fresh basil and some olives or chillies if using them. Remove the tomatoes and peppers and add them straight in with any juices and add half of the crispy Italian meats. Drizzle the dressing over the top.
  10. Mix the pasta salad well and divide it between 4 bowls. Top with parmesan and the remaining Italian meats and serve with lots of black pepper.