Description

This Orzo Salad is tossed with a lemon basil dressing, with fresh cucumbers, tomatoes and arugula. A healthy, vegan, pasta salad that can be made ahead for midweek lunches or potlucks. Keep it vegan or add feta!

Ingredients

Units

1 cup dry orzo pasta (uncooked)
2 Turkish cucumbers, sliced (about 2 cups) or use English cucumbers
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
handful of baby arugula (optional or sub baby spinach)

Lemon Basil Dressing

1 cup basil ( packed down tight, about 2 ounces)
2 fat garlic cloves
zest from one medium lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper

Optional additions: cheese (goat, feta, shaved pecorino or parmesan), seeds, nuts, avocado, microgreens, or chickpeas

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Instructions

Cook orzo in generously salted water. Drain and rinse with cold water until cooled.
Place basil, garlic, and lemon zest in a food processor. Pulse repeatedly until uniformly chopped. Add lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper. Pulse a couple more times until combined, but not smooth.
Place cooled orzo into a bowl and toss with the flavorful basil lemon sauce. Add any additions like; cherry tomatoes, cucumber, chickpeas, snap peas, goat cheese, avocado, nuts, seeds, arugula, etc.
Orzo will soak up much of the salt after it sits, so make sure to taste for salt right before serving. I’ll usually add another ¼ teaspoon. Adjust the lemon, adding more to taste. If the salad tastes overly bitter ( it might be the olive oil) try adding a tiny bit of sugar- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon.
Enjoy!

Notes

If you plan to add a lot of veggies or beans to the orzo (like, more than a cup or two) double or 1 ½ times the lemon basil dressing so your final dish still has plenty of flavor and vibrant color.

Orzo Salad will keep 4 days in the fridge

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 1/4 cups ( without feta)
Calories: 233
Sugar: 1.1 g
Sodium: 293.1 mg
Fat: 15 g
Saturated Fat: 2.1 g
Carbohydrates: 23.6 g
Fiber: 3 g
Protein: 4.5 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg