I
thought my first blog post should be about one of the first recipes I
ever decided to make when I first started cooking. I got it from The
Black Dog Cook Book and have evolved it (minorly) over the past few times I
have made it. In the cook book it is under the "vegetable"
category but I have turned it into a main dish by adding
protein, shredded chicken. The nice thing about this dish is it can be
served cold or hot and is delicious both ways. Last night we ate it hot
for dinner, but today I ate it cold as a side with a sandwich. The
balsamic vinegar and olive oil help prevent it from clumping up when it gets
cold like plain orzo tends to do. I love this dish because it tastes so
fresh and refreshing. The tomatoes and spinach give a back garden feel
while the lemon zest and flat leaf parsley keep the flavors
crisp. Adding the toasted pinenuts on top give it the perfect
crunch. This dish is always enjoyed by the people I have made it for...a
fantastic summer deck dinner!
Ingredients:
· 2 Tbsp olive oil (You
will need one Tbsp to toast the pine nuts and the other for the dressing.)
· 1/3 Cup
pinenuts (They are expensive but I think a necessity for this dish...They
are also great on salads, balsamic asparagus, etc.)
· 2 Tbsp balsamic
vinegar
· 1 Clove minced garlic
(I prefer the garlic from the jar. All the taste, no work, and you don't
have to worry about it going bad like you do with fresh)
· 1/2 Cup stemmed
spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
· 1/4 Cup flat leafed
(Italian) parsley, coarsely chopped
· 1 Cup tomatoes,
seeded and chopped (Squeezing out the seeds makes the tomatoes more
"meaty")
· 1 Tbsp grated lemon
zest (I slice the lemon up after and put it in a Tupperware to
use for drinks in the future.)
· 5-6 Oz of feta,
crumbled
· 1/2 of a rotisserie
chicken (pull bite sized pieces off)
· 1/4 tsp salt
· a little more
than 1 cup of orzo
· salt and pepper to
taste
Recipe:
Heat 1 Tbsp of the olive oil in a saute pan until hot. Add pinenuts, saute and lightly salt. Mark sure you are moving the pan frequently to make sure they are lightly browned evenly (2-3 min).
When done, place them on a plate with a paper
towel to drain.
In
a medium sized bowl whisk the other 1 Tbsp of olive oil with the balsamic
vinegar, and minced garlic. Add the spinach. parsley, tomatoes, lemon zest
and feta. Toss together gently.
My boyfriend thought this part alone looked good enough to eat. It smells so flavorful!
Boil water, add salt and orzo. Cook for 12
minutes.
While orzo is cooking, pull the chicken from the
bone and add it to the tomato mixture.
Drain the orzo and add it immediately to the
tomato mixture. Toss lightly. I always keep the pinenuts on the
side so people can add the amount they want and so they don't get soggy.
Bon
Appétit! We had the orzo with a glass of white wine and for dessert had
store bought cookies 'n cream brownies from Publix. MMmmmm.
Do you have a favorite summer deck meal?
