I use artichokes in a few recipes I create and decided to make this in the morning to serve in the evening. It can be served warm or cold and would be a nice salad to take along to a potluck. I didn’t use much orzo since I wanted the vegetables to do the talking. Everything I used in this recipe can be purchased at Trader Joe’s if you are lucky enough to live by one. With only 2 people living in our house right now, the big stores aren’t for me as often.
Artichoke Orzo Salad
- 1/4 Cup Orzo
- 1 14 oz. Can Artichokes, drained, cut in half and patted dry
- 4 Tbls. Olive Oil (separated)
- 1 8 oz. package Mushrooms, sliced
- 1/4 Red Onion, thinly sliced
- 16-20 cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half
- 8-10 Kalamata Olives, sliced
- Feta Cheese, as much or as little as you like.
- Chopped leftover Grilled Chicken Breast (optional)
Dressing
- 1 lemon, grate the rind
- 3 Tbls. Olive Oil
- 1/3 Cup Chopped Parsley
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Bring salted water to boil in a small sauce pan, add orzo and cook al dente (my directions said nine minutes, but I cooked for about seven.) When cooked, drain and return to the same pan.
Add olive oil and stir. Squeeze in the lemon juice, add the parsley, garlic, grated lemon, salt and pepper. Stir and set aside.
In a 12 inch pan, heat 2 Tbls. Olive oil. Place the artichoke hearts cut side down and let saute until lightly brown, turn, saute a few more minutes and then put into a large bowl. Remove any bits left, then heat 2 more Tbls. of olive oil. Add the mushrooms and saute until lightly brown, then add the onions. Then the onions are soft, push aside and place the tomatoes cut side down into the pan. Saute for about 2 minutes, mix them to deglaze the pan, then put mushrooms, onions and tomatoes into the same bowl as the artichokes.
Mix the dressed orzo into the vegetables. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Can be served warm with Feta cheese sprinkled on top or put into the refrigerator to cool and serve later. It’s great as a side to my BBQ or Beer Can Chicken. Add Feta cheese after it is chilled and serve alone or on arugula lettuce or stuff a tomato or an avocado.
Tips:
- I like Trader Joe’s Preserved Lemons in dressings. I chopped 2 slices and added to the dressing instead of the freshly grated lemon rind.
- You can add more orzo to stretch the recipe a little farther, just make a little more dressing.
- Add some red pepper flakes if you want a little “heat”