Strawberry Caprese Pasta Salad with Balsamic Glaze
An easy strawberry caprese pasta salad that makes a perfect side or a main course! This pasta salad is tossed with a light homemade balsamic glaze and is perfect for spring or summer picnics! Serve it my itself or add in leftover diced chicken!
Servings: 5 -6 servings
Ingredients
balsamic glaze:
- ¾ cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar or brown sugar, honey, etc
- pinch of salt
pasta salad:
- 10 ounces pasta such as penne, farfelle, etc
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella diced (see note)
- 8 ounces strawberry halves
- 2 cups packed baby spinach
- 1 large avocado diced
- 1 bunch basil leaves torn
Instructions
- BALSAMIC GLAZE: Combine the vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan over high heat, allow the balsamic vinegar mixture to come to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and allow to simmer and reduce by half for 15-20 minutes. If it starts reducing too fast, drop the heat to medium-low. The glaze will thicken quite a bit when it cools so allow for it to cool while you boil the pasta.
- PASTA: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt and allow the pasta to cook as directed on the box, drain well.
- PASTA SALAD: Combine the pasta, mozzarella, strawberries, baby spinach, avocados and basil in a large bowl, drizzle with desired amount of balsamic glaze, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Mozzarella: I used cherry sized mozzarella balls that I found in the deli section. You can use whatever size you prefer, or just purchase the larger logs/balls and dice them!
