Orzo Salad From Macrina
Source: Macrina’s Bakery and Cafe Cookbook (added Oct. ’04)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Walnut Halves
- 1 Cucumber
- 1 Red Bell Pepper
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper
- Kosher Salt
- 1½ cups Dry Orzo Pasta
- 1 Olive Oil
- ½ cup Kalamata Olives, Pitted And Halved
- ½ cup Scallions, Diced
- ¼ cup Fresh Basil, Chopped
- ¼ cup Fresh Italian Parsley Chopped
- 1¼ cups Crumbled Feta Cheese
- ⅓ cup Lemon Vinaigrette
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Method
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spread walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast on center rack of oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool, then coarsely chop and set aside.
Peel and core cucumber and cut it into ½-inch cubes. Core the red and yellow peppers and cut them into ½-inch pieces. Set aside.
Fill a large saucepan two-thirds full of water. Add a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Drop in pasta and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, or until tender. Remove the pan from the heat and drain the pasta in a colander, then cool the pasta by running cold tap water over the colander for a few minutes. Shake the colander to remove excess water and transfer the cooled pasta to a medium bowl. Toss with olive oil to keep the pasta from sticking together.
Add the toasted walnuts, cucumber, peppers, olives, scallions, basil, parsley, and feta. Drizzle in Lemon Vinaigrette and toss well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Notes
If not serving all at once, I store salad and dressing separately and drizzle dressing only just before serving.
Lemon Vinaigrette (makes approx. 1¼ cups)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 2 tsp red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp freshly grated lemon zest, ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 tsp honey, 1 garlic clove, finely chopped, 1 tsp kosher salt, ¼ tsp white pepper, ¾ cup olive oil
Combine mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, lemon zest, garlic, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Mix well with a whisk. Add olive oil in a slow stream, whisking as you pour in the oil. Continue whisking until the dressing has emulsified, then cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Delicious but a little too salty for my taste. Beware!