After the mass amount of meat I ate this weekend, I figured it was high-time for a veggie salad. So maybe I missed Meatless Monday by a day, but hey, better late than never, yes? This recipe was right up my alley : Mediterranean flavors plus light, quick and easy to make. Done and done.
Mediterranean Orzo Salad with Feta Vinaigrette
serves 4
1 cup uncooked orzo (about 8 ounces)
2 cups bagged prewashed baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
3 tablespoons chopped red onion
3 tablespoons chopped pitted kalamata olives
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, undrained
3/4 cup (3 ounces) feta cheese, crumbled and divided
Cook the orzo according to package directions, omitting the salt and fat. Drain; rinse with cold water. Combine orzo, spinach, and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl.
Drain artichokes, reserving marinade. Coarsely chop artichokes, and add artichokes, reserved marinade, and 1/2 cup feta cheese to orzo mixture, tossing gently to coat. Sprinkle each serving with remaining feta cheese.
Taylor's Notes:
This was a perfect weeknight meal. Do I say that a lot? If so, it's only because I love easy weeknight meals. And really, who doesn't? Anyhoo... this would be perfect as a side with chicken or fish, but was really great on it's own too.
Those of you who know me well will be very surprised that I actually used the sun-dried tomatoes. But I did and I liked them. I know, shocker. I'm becoming such a big girl. I also added capers... a salty little twist that, quite frankly, I'm surprised wasn't in the original recipe. But, like I often say, make it your own. Add what you want, leave out what you don't. Double the amount of olives, cut the onions in half (hello, thank goodness it's not date night!) Whatever you do...
Enjoy!
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