Antipasto Pasta Salad

David and I actually made this pasta salad Sunday for his family's belated Christmas get together and it turned out really yummy! It is an Emeril Lagasse recipe that I found on the FoodNetwork website and it was just so good that I figured I would share! We've tried several really good recipes lately and so moving forward I am going to *try* to share them here as often as possible so that others can try them out for themselves. This pasta salad was VERY easy to make, doesn't have too many ingredients and tasted great! The only thing we changed from the recipe is that we used pepperoni instead of prosciutto and that is only because the nearest grocery store that David went to in order to buy the ingredients didn't have any so we compromised and used pepperoni instead. The prosciutto would have been a ton better, just because I LOVE it, but in any case, the salad turned out pretty fab.

Antipasto Pasta Salad

Ingredients

2 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound rotini pasta
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Emeril's Italian Essence, or other dried Italian herb mixture
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups 1/4-inch cubes provolone
1 cup thinly sliced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
1 cup thinly sliced salami (1/4 pound)
1 cup thinly sliced prosciutto (1/4 pound)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions

Combine 2 tablespoons salt, the olive oil, and 4 quarts water in a large pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the rotini and cook, stirring occasionally to keep the pasta from sticking together, until just al dente, about 9 minutes.

Meanwhile, mash together the garlic and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Add the balsamic vinegar, Italian Essence, black pepper, and crushed red pepper. Whisk to blend. Gradually whisk in the olive oil.

Drain the rotini and rinse under cold running water until cool. Add to the vinaigrette, along with the provolone, tomatoes, salami, prosciutto, parsley, and basil. Toss to mix. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Let the salad return to room temperature before serving.