Mediterranean pasta salad

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 500 g pasta (e.g. penne or spirelli)
• salt water
• 400 g mushrooms, white or brown
• 200 g feta cheese
• 400 g tomatoes (e.g. cocktail tomatoes)
• 1 small onion(s)
• 1 garlic clove(s)
• 1 tsp sugar
• Balsamic vinegar
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• oregano
• 50 g lentils, red or
• 80 g pine nuts and/or
• 80 g arugula
• Basil for decoration

Instructions

Working time approx. 35 minutes; Total time approx. 35 minutes

with feta, mushrooms and tomatoes

Cook the pasta al dente in salted water according to the package instructions. Drain and let cool, or rinse with cold water. Slice the mushrooms and sauté in a pan with a little oil. Dice the onions and finely chop the garlic. Add the mushrooms, onions, garlic, and a teaspoon of sugar to the pasta. Season with plenty of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano. You can also omit the olive oil. Dice the feta cheese, chop the tomatoes, and add both to the pasta, stirring in just before serving (no more than an hour before). For the version with red lentils, prepare the lentils according to the package instructions (careful: the lentils will quickly become mushy if cooked for too long), rinse with cold water, and mix with the pasta and the other ingredients to marinate. For the version with pine nuts (and arugula), toast the pine nuts in a pan without oil and add them to the pasta along with the washed and coarsely chopped arugula. Mix everything together just before serving.