Mediterranean Penne Salad

Total Time: 30 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon french mustard
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons wine vinegar
• 1 dl olive oil (3 3/8 fl.oz. )
• 3 tablespoons fresh mint (or a mixture) or 3 tablespoons fresh basil, finely chopped (or a mixture)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• pepper, freshly ground
• 160 g mozzarella cheese, in cubes (nearly 6 ounces)
• 300 g penne rigate (10-11 ounces)
• 2 zucchini (ca. 400g or ca. 14 ounces)
• 100 g dry-cured ham, sliced (3 1/2 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 200 g cherry tomatoes (7 ounces)

Recipe

• 1 dressing: mix all ingredients until and including the pepper. marinate the mozarella cubes in the dressing for 15 minutes.
• 2 pasta: cook penne in plenty of saltwater until done. drain. rinse with cold water. put aside.
• 3 use a potato peeler to slice zucchini lengthwise (or cut them lengthwise and fry in a grill pan or skillet and cut into bite-size pieces). heat olive oil in frying pan. fry zucchini with the dry-cured ham for 1 minute. let cool, then add to the dressing.
• 4 half the cherry tomatoes and season cut sides with salt and pepper. add to the dressing.
• 5 carefully mix in the cooked pasta and let the flavours mingle for 15 minutes or more.
• 6 serve at room temperature.