Have you ever heard of Chipparelli's restaurant in Baltimore's Little Italy? Their house salad dressing is legendary, addictive and oh-so-cheesey! Typically it is tossed with romaine, cherry tomotoes, red onion rings, and Italian frying peppers (cut in to rings), but it can also be used as a dressing for a fabulous pasta salad....and that is just what we did for a party Friday night!
Chipparelli Dressing:
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1 Clove Garlic, crushed
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1 boiled egg, crushed/pulverized
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Sprinkle of Salt, sugar, pepper, oregano
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1 cup grated Parmesean cheese
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¼ cup red wine vinegar
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1 cup salad oil
Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate any unused potion (dressing will separate and firm up when chilled...just leave out to loosen back up when you want to use leftovers)
Pasta Salad:
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1 box "stabby pasta" (penne, rotini, etc...anything bite-size that can be easily stabbed with a fork), cooked to al dente, drained and rinsed
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1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
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the kernels from 1-2 ears of corn (cooked). Frozen corn will also work
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2 carrots - diced
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1 red pepper - diced
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cherry tomatoes, halved
Mix everything but the tomatoes together and toss with the Chipparelli dressing. Top with halved cherry tomatoes. Serve on a bed of lettuce to "pretty it up".
Does it seem like some of my recipes aren't very exact? You are right! This pasta salad was made using the "ok - let's see what I have in the fridge and pantry" method. It's the dressing that is the "star of the show"! Just use what you have!
The best dishes are those that are created through experimenting (the problem comes in when I make something great and then can't remember what I put in it!)
(Thanks to the unnamed Chipparelli's waitress who said "Sure you can have the dressing recipe! It's my last night here. What do I care?". But if you are ever in Baltimore's Little Italy, be sure to check out Chipparelli's! The food is worth the trip!)
