Do you ever get a craving for a certain kind of food? I do – and for some reason lately (probably since we made this recipe), I’ve been craving Greek-inspired foods! Something about the zesty, salty and spicy flavors has been calling my name! And with July 4th barbecues coming up – after I mentioned my Greek food craving to Jack – he offered to make his delicious Mediterranean Pasta Salad!
Jack made a version of this Mediterranean pasta salad several years ago – but he’s taken the flavors up several notches in this recipe!  It’s an easy pasta salad with classic Mediterranean ingredients – garlic, olives, tomatoes, peppers, artichokes and feta cheese, plus basil and mint for some additional fresh flavor.
But the dressing…OH…this fantastic dressing! The dressing is also made with classic ingredients…but the flavors are super intense and wonderful because the extra virgin olive oil has been heated and then flavored with garlic and oregano – making the flavors really come alive! Some salt and pepper is added for seasoning as well – and then a final splash of fresh lemon juice completes this perfect dressing.
Then – this wonderful dressing is poured over the hot, freshly cooked pasta – and the pasta absorbs some of the dressing as it cools. Honestly – I’d be happy eating the flavored pasta with just the dressing – it’s that delicious!
All of the vegetables and pasta get tossed together and then the salad is chilled. And – a final generous sprinkle of feta cheese completes this wonderful Mediterranean pasta salad.
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This recipe uses fresh herbs, which are highly recommended. If fresh herbs are not available, use half the amount of dry herbs for each listed.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped garlic (3-4 medium cloves)
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about one large lemon)
- 12 ounces dry Ditalini (or your favorite pasta)
- Zest from one lemon
- ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives sliced in half
- ½ cup grape tomatoes cut in half
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint, leaves rolled and sliced (chiffonade)
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil, leaves rolled and sliced (chiffonade)
- ½ cup red onions chopped
- 1 cup diced green bell pepper (about one medium pepper)
- 1 14-ounce can artichoke hearts drained, stems left on and quartered the long way
- 8 ounces crumbled feta cheese
Instructions
- In a medium sauté pan over a low flame, add oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and cook slowly for about 8 minutes or until the garlic just begins to brown.
- Remove from heat and add the lemon juice. Set this mixture aside.
- Start cooking the pasta per the box directions but cook just slightly under cooked.
- While the pasta is cooking, start preparing the remaining ingredients.
- When the pasta is just a little under done, remove to a colander and drain but do not rinse.
- Place cooked drained hot pasta in a large bowl and add the flavored oil and lemon juice mixture. Stir and let sit at room temperature for a few minutes.
- Add all other prepared ingredients except feta and stir. Refrigerate until chilled then stir in the feta and serve.
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I love all the flavors in this delicious salad. Greek food is always a craving of mine.
Thanks Christie! We’ll have to go back to that Greek restaurant again if we ever make it back to Miami!
Oh my. That dressing does sound fabulous! I love a good Greek dressing but I’ve never tried heating the oil with the spices. I bet that makes it super intense! Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks Courtney! Heating the oil definitely works some magic! Hope you enjoy the recipe as much as we do!
I’m quite sure I’d drink that dressing.
Oh…great idea Claire! Why didn’t I think to do that? 🙂
I can’t wait to make this!!
Thank you!
Wow, Martha! I want to pour this dressing on absolutely everything! I’ll start with this pasta salad but after that, the sky’s the limit!
Definitely Kirsten – it’s a great method to intensify any homemade dressing!
This pasta salad is perfect for a BBQ, love it!
Thanks Angie!
Yum! I love pasta salads and the Mediterranean twist of flavors sounds amazing to me right now! I will have to make this for my next cook out we get invited to!
Thanks Amanda!
I need to organize a picnic so I can make THIS.
Thanks Paula!
Beautiful looking pasta salad. I bet those flavors really come through!
Thanks Christine!! They do indeed!
Sounds perfect for 4th of July. Honestly, I think I pin just about everything you post! Thank you.
Thank you Maria! 🙂 You’ve made our day!
Wow that looks awesome! So colorful and I love the texture! Hubby would devour that!
Thanks Val!
YUM, this is the perfect summer pasta salad! 🙂
Thanks Jenn!
This salad is right up my alley. Mediterranean flavors are so light and fresh!
I agree Melissa! Thanks for visiting today!
I’ll take a huge serving of this, please and thank you! It looks good enough to make a meal out of!
Thanks Lauren!
I love this!!! I’m a huge fan of feta and Kalamata olives. I don’t think I would share this with anyone.
Thanks Samantha!
This is such a fun twist on traditional pasta salad. Looks amazing!
Thank you!
I have been making this type of salad for years. It is my husband’s and my favorite. I use brown rice pasta, green onions, sun dried tomatoes, pine nuts and shredded carrots. Using brown rice pasta makes it a healthier salad and we feel we are not eating empty calories.
Sounds delicious Elena!
Love your recipes! However, some of us out here need to Know the Nutrition values for health reasons. Thank you.
Thanks Luci. My Fitness Pal is a great free online calculator you can use if necessary!
OMG! Made this pasta salad dish last night! I am in love with the flavors. In fact, the garlic mixture alone is amazing with just the pasta. Didn’t use the green peppers because I thought it would muddy the taste, but I give you two thumbs up!!!!! Wow, making it again and again.
Thanks Maureen! We’re so glad you enjoyed the recipe! (And I agree – that garlic mixture…it’s terrific!)
I love the flavors in this recipe! I used cucumbers instead of the peppers and it came out great! Thanks!!
Great idea Kelly! Thank you for taking the time to write to us today!
I want to make this for a bbq this weekend, how far in advance can I make it up? Or should I just mix it all together a few minutes before serving? I’m so excited to give it a try. Thanks
Hi Laura – The morning of your BBQ should be fine. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
I made this pasta salad for Fathers Day dinner Sunday. Everyone really enjoyed. Great recipe and the EVOO/Lemon Juice dressing was wonderful. Will definitely make again! Thanks.
Thanks for taking the time to write to us Michelle! So glad you all enjoyed the recipe as much as we do!
I made your pasta salad for 4th of July Barbeque. The host was making chicken & beef kabobs and hummus, so I knew when I found your recipe that it would go very well with the meal. I especially liked the simplicity of the “dressing” as it let the freshness of the other vegetables and herbs shine thought. Everyone loved it! Thanks very much for sharing. I will certainly make this again. 🙂
Thanks Becca! We’re so glad you all enjoyed the salad! (It’s one of my favorites!) Thanks for writing to us today!
I love meditteranean style salads. I’ve had them at restaurants and was so excited to make this. I have to say that this was bland and tasteless. I thought with all the veggies and spices ( fresh from my garden by the way )and heating the oil and garlic it would be fabulous, and it was not. I absolutely hate to be negative, but I think it’s important to give an honest review.
I’m sorry you were disappointed in the recipe Michelle! Thanks for sharing your feedback.
I made the Mediterranean pasta dish and it was so good! My entire family loved it! I loved all the veggies and fresh herbs in the dish. It will definitely be something I make again. It would even be great to take to an event, bbq, or party.
Thank you!
Thanks Christine – so glad you all enjoyed it! And yes – this is a great salad for summer BBQ’s! (Counting the days until warmer weather is here…) 🙂
Looking forward to trying this while camping at the ocean. 2 quick observations. Serves 10 seems a bit high for only 12 oz of pasta. I know it’s just a side, but in today’s world…. I also am worried about the amount of dressing. Pasta seems to soak it up. I have previously dumped (I now realize my ways which is why I found you) 2 to 3 bottles of dressing on a similarly sized salad. Advice please? Other than that I think you and your husband are adorable, fantastically talented, and I look forward to cooking and eating with you.
Hi Ericka! Thank you so much for your email – you’ve made our day! And great questions. There are a lot of added ingredients (vegetables, cheese, etc) while helps increase the yield of the salad – but if your family includes some hearty eaters (like ours!) 🙂 or if you are serving this more as an entree rather than a side dish, the servings may be more like 6-8. The dressing on this salad (along with the olives and feta cheese) is fairly zesty so you won’t need a lot of dressing to add great flavor. But again – feel free to mix up some additional dressing if you’d like a wetter salad or if your pasta is very hot and soaks up all the dressing. Hope that helps – and we hope you love this salad! Have a great weekend! Martha
This recipe is soooo awesome! Thanks so much! It’s heaven!
Thanks Amber! Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I love it! The lemon and mint with the garlic is just so incredibly surprising and delicious. Give it a try, you won’t be sorry.
Thanks Kathleen! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I love this pasta salad, so full of flavor. The secret is to add the dressing to the still warm pasta so the flavors are taken in by the pasta. It makes a big difference. Thanks for sharing.
You’re very welcome Pat! So glad you are enjoying the recipe!