Pasta Salad

16 oz Rotelli
3-4 medium tomatoes, diced (about 2 cups)
3 bell peppers (1 red, 1 green, 1 yellow)
1 bunch of green onions (5 or 6)
1/4 to 1/2 red onion
Capers
Calamata Olives

Dressing:
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup mix (80% red wine vinegar, 10% balsamic, 10% water)

Salt and Pepper

Optional: juice of one lemon lemon zest romano cheese

Preparation: Boil the pasta al dente in salted water and drain. Allow the pasta to cool slightly before tossing in all the ingredients. Use the lemon rind to grate some lemon zest over the pasta. Grate some Romano cheese over the top.

How to prepare the Calamata olives: Place an olive on the cutting board. Using a coffee cup, slam the bottom of the cup over the olive. The olive skin will split and the pit can be easily removed. Alternatively you can place the side of a large knife over the olive and tap it with your hand to split the olive. It's easy to process many olives quickly by breaking the process into two steps - split the olives first, then remove the pits.