Also, I discovered this dish is good hot. We took some to work last week and it has been so cold in our building (state government caring about us drones, right?) so I heated a little dish in the microwave. The feta became soft and melty, good combo of flavors. I will definitely make this salad again.
Mediterranean Orzo Salad
Ingredients
Dressing:
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
1 clove garlic, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Salad:
12 ounces orzo pasta
One 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained.
1 1/2 cups red grape or cherry tomatoes
1 1/2 cups yellow grape or cherry tomatoes
1 1/2 cups kalamata olives, halved
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese, plus more for topping
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, plus more for topping
1 red onion, diced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the dressing: In a jar or bowl, mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and some salt and pepper until totally combined.
For the salad: Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the orzo according to the package directions. Drain and let cool.
Place the orzo, chickpeas, red and yellow tomatoes, olives, feta, parsley and onions in a large mixing bowl and pour the dressing over the top. Stir to combine and taste; add salt and pepper if needed. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
Top with more feta and parsley and serve as a main dish salad or with grilled chicken, fish or burgers!
I am sharing this with Beth Fish's Weekend Cooking Series.
Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.
I love orzo and this looks amazing - except for the olives. You can have my share and I'll just take and extra scoop of feta! This looks like it'd be a great side dish or even lunch during the week for me.
ReplyDeleteI love orzo salads. This one looks great with the feta and chickpeas. Although with my caper fetish, I would have to throw some in there with the olives. ;-)
ReplyDeleteHi Tina:)
ReplyDeleteYou had me at Mediterranean! Add the Orzo and the heat and I'm in! Cold just isn't doing it for me these last couple of days, it's Winter up here and it has arrived!!!
Thank you so much for sharing, Tina...Hope you're nice and warm:)
Vicki, turns out I didn't have the kalamata olives and substituted black olives. It was good.
ReplyDeleteDeb, we ate this for days but like I said, heating it gave a different take on it, very good, capers, yes!
Katherine, it's a deal, I'll take your olives and you can have extra feta 😃
Louise, sounds like you need a holiday in the sun!
This looks very good. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
ReplyDeleteOooh this looks really good, and I just checked out that cookbook from the library. I bet if you added some tuna or sardines you could have a complete meal -- but the grilled wings look pretty yummy too.
ReplyDeleteHey, happy accident on the heating! I love feta in salads and this looks amazing!
ReplyDeleteI love feta and olives! mmmmmm
ReplyDeleteI like orzo and don't have it nearly as often as I'd like. This recipe is good incentive. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteOooh, I 'Ve got some orzo somewhere - I think I'll incorporate it with some leftover pulled pork. Cheers from Carole's Chatter!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ladies! I sure love the Pioneer Woman cookbooks. Great recipes.
ReplyDeleteI admire your resolve to add a new recipe to your weekly menu planning. That must make for an adventurous cooking life. Good for you!
ReplyDeleteThis looks delicious. I'm going to have to pick up this cookbook.
ReplyDeleteSounds delicious! I make a lot of rice and pasta salads in the summer, but serving it warm in the winter is a good idea, too!
ReplyDeleteI've been going out to lunch with some friends every month or so recently and last time we went to a new-ish Mideastern restuaurant that I'd been wanting to try for awhile, but I had described it as "Mediterranean." It turned out one woman in the group couldn't stand foods like falafel, hummus, taboulleh, feta cheese, black olives, etc. After searching the menu in desperation for several minutes, she finally cried out, "When you said Mediterranean, I thought you meant Italian!" ;)
Love orzo, so good in soup too. Sorry it's been cold @ work. Simon and I tried to walk along the beach this morning ... tried is the operative word. #shudder #freezing
ReplyDelete