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Marinated Tomato & Tortellini Salad with cucumbers, onion, olives, avocado, cheese and fresh garden herbs.
Don’t forget the crusty bread to soak up all the juices in this tortellini salad!
It’s that time of year when tomatoes are incredibly beautiful, red, ripe and flavorful and all we can think about is having tomatoes at every meal. It took a long time for our tomatoes to get going this year. We had a super wet, cool spring, then jumped right into hot, hot, dry weather.
Now it’s cool again with non-stop dreary days of rain. It’s just now August and feels like the start of fall! What an odd weather cycle. Anyway – in between all this weather hoopla, we’ve got gorgeous tomatoes fresh from our garden to the table!
Try this unique method for imparting flavor into the tomatoes.
Fresh tomato sandwiches are probably my husband’s preferred method of using up the tomatoes, but salads like this are mine.
What makes this salad somewhat unique is that the tomatoes are first marinated in a bright vinaigrette loaded with fresh herbs. You can marinate them for an hour or so while prepping the other ingredients, or leave them on the counter for up to 4 hours. I like to throw in the onions with the tomatoes to take some of the bite out and add the tortellini once it’s cooked and cooled. You get the picture, it’s all good!
From there you’re free to get as creative as you want.
If you’re watching carbs (and who isn’t?) use rotisserie or grilled chicken instead of the tortellini for a nice protein packed salad. Sprinkle with crumbled feta in place of the cubed provolone, and maybe add a few chopped walnuts to the mix too. Be sure to include plenty of olives and sliced avocado to round out this main course salad.
TIPS for making our Marinated Tomato & Tortellini Salad:
- If you have a good olive bar at your local grocery store they may have assorted olives and cubed marinated cheese available in one combined mixture. I was able to pick up olives with cubed provolone and saved some time prepping the cheese.
- Smoked apple Gouda, feta or cheddar are also great in this salad.
- In years past, I’ve marinated grape and cherry tomatoes in this same vinaigrette. They work well but there’s something about a meaty tomato that speaks to me. Garden fresh herbs make this salad extra special, but dried herbs will work fine too.
- Substitute another pasta for the tortellini if preferred. A bow tie pasta or small spiral would be great too.
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Marinated Tomato & Tortellini Salad
Ingredients
For the vinaigrette:
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- ¾ cup canola oil
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- 3 whole scallions sliced thin
For the salad:
- 3 large ripe tomatoes cut into wedges
- 1 (9-ounce) package refrigerated cheese tortellini cooked and cooled
- ¼ red onion sliced thin
- 1 avocado peeled then sliced or cubed
- 1 english cucumber peeled and cubed or sliced
- 1 cup cubed cheese like provolone cheddar or crumbled feta
- 1 cup assorted seedless olives
- Lettuce for serving
- Fresh ground black pepper for serving
- Lemon wedges for serving if desired
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients. Add the tomatoes and toss to coat. Cover and set aside at room temperature for several hours or until ready to serve.
- Cook and cool the tortellini and drain well. Add the tortellini and the sliced red onion to the marinated tomatoes while preparing the other vegetables, if desired.
- To serve, line a large salad bowl or 4 individual bowls with lettuce. Using a slotted spoon, divide the tomatoes, onions and tortellini between the salad bowl(s). Add all remaining vegetables, olives and cheese. Top with fresh ground black pepper and pass the remaining vinaigrette for drizzling on individual servings. Serve with lemon wedges if desired.
- Great served with crusty bread to soak up all the juice.
Recipe Notes
- Substitute rotisserie or grilled chicken for the tortellini for a protein packed hearty meal.
- Add chickpeas if desired or any of your other favorite vegetables.
Nutrition
Here are a few more of our favorite tomato recipes you might like:
Spicy Summer Tomato Jam – not too sweet, but loaded with rich flavor. Great slathered on a biscuit or a grilled cheese sandwich. You won’t believe how delicious this jam is on everything!
Savory Tomato Cobbler – it’s hard to come up with enough superlatives to describe this wonderful, delicious, slightly sweet, savory, rich and absolutely delightful Tomato Cobbler direct from our garden to the table! This is a must make with your summer tomatoes!
Easy Tomato Confit ~ sweet summer tomatoes slow cooked in the oven with olive oil, garlic, crushed red pepper and a handful of fresh thyme. There are so many ways to use these tomatoes – check it out!
For a few more creative and delicious ways to use summer tomatoes, check out these wonderful posts! I could dig into a bowl of this Easy Tomato Tortellini Soup from Amy at BellyFull. And, you’ll love the colors in this gorgeous Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho from Sue at The View from Great Island. And finally, check out these Baked Tomatoes with Mozzarella Parmesan from Becky at The Cookie Rookie. A terrific summer side dish!
Liz Fledderjohann
The marinated tomato salad with all of the other goodies may be my favorite salad of all times. I didn’t even include the pasta or the chicken, rather I served it as a side dish…and it was a true hit. I’m glad you included the bit about sopping up all those juiced with crusty bread. Guests “cleaned their plates.” Thanks for this new favorite!!!
Tricia Buice
Yeah! I truly LOVE those marinated tomatoes. I dream about this recipe each summer and can’t wait until the tomatoes are ripe. Thanks so much Liz – hope you had a great summer! Take care xoxoxo
Pam
This is a great summer salad, Tricia! I’m a fan of about anything with tortellini and this would well with any grilled meat. I’d be happy with just the salad and crusty bread! Thanks for the recipe.
Tricia Buice
All these components are favorites in the summer – love these hearty salads, and love my bread. Thanks Pam!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
Such a lovely salad and hearty enough for dinner! Perfect Summer eating 🙂
Tricia Buice
Thanks Jennifer.
Larry
I like the look of salads built this way and it sounds delicious, but that tomato cobbler looks killer.
Tricia Buice
You have a great eye Larry – that cobbler is one of my all time favorite tomato recipes. Hope you’ll give it a try!
Mimi
This is just lovely. A lot of my favorite ingredients all in one place! I love that you marinated the tomatoes!
Tricia Buice
Thanks Mimi – marinating adds so much flavor – hope you’ll give it a try!
monique
Ibet it’s delicious..lotta love in that!
Tricia Buice
Want to love it into my tummy for sure! Love this salad – thanks Monique!
Melissa Sperka
So fresh for summer!
Tricia Buice
Thanks Melissa!
sue @theviewfromgreatisland
I’ve always loved tortellini salad, the little bit of carb really helps! The flavors looks especially inviting, and I agree about the olive bar, it’s my first stop every time I visit my store ~ sharing and pinning 🙂
Tricia Buice
Thanks Sue – this is so delicious. Wish I had it again today 🙂
Gerlinde @ Sunnycovechef
Oops, I mean pinned for later since I am in Switzerland.
Tricia Buice
Awesome! Have a wonderful time – take lots of photos too please!
Gerlinde @ Sunnycovechef
I love all of your tomato recipes and can’t decide which one I like best. They all look so good. Pinned!
Tricia Buice
Thanks Gerlinde! They are some of our best 🙂
John / Kitchen Riffs
It’s been HOT here. Although the last week has been unusually cloudy, with some rain — we were talking about how it seemed rather like fall, although too hot for fall. Weird weather. Anyway, wonderful salad! We love salads at this time of the year. LOVE THEM! And have them several times a week as a main course. So this is perfect for us — thanks!
Tricia Buice
The weather is crazy everywhere I think. Thanks John – I bet you would love this salad too!
Angie@Angie's Recipes
I want this for my dinner! So fresh and good 🙂
Tricia Buice
Me too Angie – I could eat this everyday.