Greek Orzo Salad

A delicious summer salad bursting with flavor.  This is a staple at my house all summer long; it goes perfectly with anything off the grill or just on its own.  And the longer you let it sit after making it the better it gets, so definitely make enough for leftovers the next day!

If you want the perfect salad for a picnic or outdoor party, you can leave the feta out and not worry about the salad spoiling. 

 

1 box of Orzo pasta
1 small pack of cherry or grape tomatoes

1 half medium red onion, chopped

1 regular sized cucumber or half of a long cucumber (like the Japanese ones),   

   peeled and diced

1/4 cup sliced pepperoncinis

4 oz. of feta cheese, crumbled (I like the herb flavored feta cheeses)

1 tsp. Cavender’s or McCormick Greek Seasoning 

1/2 tsp. dried Greek oregano

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

Juice of two lemons

1/4 cup good quality white wine vinegar

1/2 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil, plus a little extra for drizzling over pasta

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add about a tablespoon of sea salt to the water, then add the orzo.  Stir.  Cook the orzo 9 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Drain and rinse immediately with cold water to stop the cooking process.  Put in a bowl and drizzle with a little of the olive oil to keep from sticking together.

Cut the tomatoes in halves (unless they're really small, then you can leave them whole), chop the red onion and cucumber to about the same size (or whatever size you want) to keep the salad uniform.  I remove the seeds from the cucumber before chopping.  Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the pasta and toss.  Add vegetables to the bowl of pasta, along with pepperoncinis, and toss.

In a measuring cup or bowl, add the juice of one lemon, vinegar, garlic, Greek seasoning, oregano, salt and pepper.  Whisk in olive oil.  Pour over the pasta and vegetables and toss together gently.  Then add the feta cheese last and fold it into the salad.  If you like olives, add black Greek olives as well. 

That's it!  Enjoy!

Until next time...

Lady by the Bay