Springtime Eats: Orzo Salad

As spring comes into town, I crave a nice and light pasta salad. My orzo salad is perfect with your favorite burger or sandwich. You can adjust the measurements easily to feed a bigger crowd. This suits my small fam of three just fine.

I like to top mine with a little feta, but it works just as well cheeseless.

This tastes great at room temp or chilled. Enjoy!

Orzo Salad
Makes 6 side dish servings

1 cup orzo
1 15 ounce can chickpeas drained and rinsed
1 cup red or yellow bell pepper, chopped
3/4 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
2 Tbsp. fresh basil minced
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
To serve: Crumbled feta cheese

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook orzo according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cool water. Set aside.

Meanwhile, in a bowl combine chickpeas, bell pepper, grape tomatoes.

In a liquid measuring cup, add red wine vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Whisk vigorously to emulsify.

Add cooled orzo to bowl with veggies. Add the dressing to the bowl. Toss lightly with a spoon. Add basil and parsley. Toss again. Adjust seasonings if desired.

Serve with a sprinkle of crumbled feta cheese if you like.

Spice Spice Baby

I love to get my veg on.

And so, I bring you another side salad: Spiced Chickpea Salad.

I’m a big fan of the chickpea. In fact, me and the delightful chickpea-creation hummus go way back. Plus, chickpeas are way healthy and all that. They’re chock full of minerals and protein and folic acid and fiber and things that those doctor types tell you to consume.

I made this salad in an attempt to use up a bunch of this and that lying about in my refrigerator. Cluttered refrigerators send me into convulsions. So does Payless Shoe Source and hoarders and leftovers.

Ick nast.

I also went a bit wild with the spices. I love spices. I buy crazy ones at The Spice Corner in Philadelphia's Italian Market.

OMG. It is made of awesome. And it will make you realize that McCormick and those grocery store evil empire brands seriously jack up their prices in a mean, mean, meanie way. Grrrrr.

When you walk into the Spice Corner, it smells just like heaven. And you can find a plethora of spices and dried beans and coffees and teas and baking supplies. It's kind of old-timey and homey and fantastic all wrapped into a little store. Love it.

Anyway, hope you love the chickpea salad. If you shun spicy flavors, you should moveon.org from this awesome recipe. And get your head checked.

Spiced Chickpea Salad
(Makes 4 to 6 servings)
1 15.5 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 clove of garlic, minced
¼ cup red onion, chopped
¼ cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 rib of celery, chopped
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
½ tsp. coriander
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. to 1 tsp hot sauce (depending on taste)
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients.

In a small bowl, combine the coriander, cumin, hot sauce, lemon, salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil. Once combined, pour over vegetable mixture. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

The Corner Spice Market is located at 904 S. Ninth Street, Philadelphia. Phone is: (215) 925-1660