Pasta salad with sweet cherry tomatoes, walnuts and olives

Pasta has never really been my food. At the restaurant it would be my last choice. Though, when I happened to be visiting my boyfriend's uncle, I couldn't stop eating that delicious seafood pasta, cooked by his Italian wife. So I admit, that can be super delicious.

On the other hand, it is hard to get fresh seafood here in a supermarket, so, in my opinion, the best one could do with frozen stuff is this Mediterranian pasta I wrote about before (check out new pics ;). I sometimes do it with the double mussels portion - quick for feeding a big family.

But let's go back to the pasta salad! Tried it once in Germany. Not good. A while ago I even considered potato or pasta salad as an offensive usage of ingredients. Not anymore, haha. When doing grocery shopping, I ran on a great deal for magnificently sweet cherry tomatoes. My parents, unfortunately, do not consider salad as dinner. That's why I have come up with an idea to combine a salad and a full meal making pasta salad without "killing" the royal taste of cherry tomatoes :)



Ingredients:

• 500 g pasts (fusilli, penne rigate)
• 1 big red onion 
• 1 cup olives (any you like)
• 3-4 celery sticks
• 1/2 to 1 cup walnuts (adjust to your own taste)
• 400 g cherry tomatoes
• fresh parsley
• lemon juice
• balsamic vinegar
• olive oil 
• salt
• black pepper

Procedure:

1. Boil pasta. Usually it states on the package what is the best cooking time for the kind you have chosen. The general tips are lots of water (take the biggest pot you have), adding a little bit of olive oil to water before putting pasta inside (water should boil vigorously). Stir your pasta, stir and stir!
2. When done, drain it and leave to cool. If you are short on time, you can wash it with cold water. 
3. Put it in the big bowl, add a little of olive oil and mix well.
4. Cut the celery sticks, cherry tomatoes in halves. Add to the bowl.
5. Chop walnuts. I have separated the amount in halves - chopped one very finely and another one left more coarse. This will add a good texture to your salad as well as crunchiness.
6. Chop the onion, sprinkle a little of lemon juice on top. Add to the bowl.
7. Cut your olives or not. Ass to the bowl.
8. Chop parsley and add to the rest.
9. Add olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I usually keep them in the 2:1 ratio respectively. 
10. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper. It tastes brighter with more pepper.
11. Mix well, so your dressing is spread through salad well.

Estimated preparation time: 10 minutes

Estimated cooking time: 15 minutes

Note: Sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top when plating.