Category Archives: vegetarian

Macaroni and Peas

Posted on June 19, 2013 | Leave a comment

Here is a delicious vegetarian pasta which is a perfect pasta for the warm summer nights and quite frankly hearty enough for the winter. It’s a sort of pea pesto , perfect at room temperature or hot . Here’s the thing, Joel has been on a very strict no carb diet for a while now and he would hate this anyway, he wouldn’t ever touch anything this green. He told me it looked like it belonged in the Exorcist movie. Once again, he doesn’t know what he’s missing, his loss but a perfect time for me to make it since he wouldn’t eat it anyway. I must say I loved it but you gotta love peas. This is also a great dish for kids, they get macaroni which they all love and all the vitamins from the peas.

Season liberally with salt and pepper and don’t be stingy with the parmesan cheese. Not a lot of ingredients but all super flavorful. This one is very heart warming and comforting to me somehow.  If you’re looking for a new take on basil pesto this could be the new one . I did use 3 tablespoons of butter and I know some of you are wincing but it’s a box of pasta it’s not all going into one individual serving. This can serve 4 -6 as a main dish and probably 8 as a side. All I can say is yum.

Ingredients:

1 pound shelled small peas, fresh or frozen will do ( I used frozen )

10 ounces pasta, I prefer the small shapes for this. Macaroni, fusilli, cavatappi, penne etc.

3 tablespoons butter ( unsalted)

1 garlic clove , chopped

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, coarsely grated (more for topping)

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper – I would start with 1/4 tsp. kosher salt and a few grinds of the pepper mill. Season according to your own taste.

Directions:

In a saucepan add enough water to just cover the peas, bring to a boil and cook until tender– about 3 minutes should do. Drain the peas–but reserve the cooking water.

Cook the pasta according to directions for al dente. Meanwhile melt the butter in a small pan over low heat; add the garlic and cook gently for a few minutes. Remove butter from the heat.

Put half of the cooked peas in a blender or food processor  with 6 tablespoons of their cooking water, the butter and garlic, and the 1/4 cup grated cheese. Puree unti smooth, adding more cooking water if necessary. Combine with whole peas that you didn’t pureeDSCN0200DSCN0211DSCN0208DSCN0203DSCN0214 and season liberally with salt and pepper. As I said I started with 1/4 tsp. of Salt, it was enough for me. I gave pepper mill a few grinds , you will season according to your own taste.

Drain the pasta and toss with the pea sauce. Serve with more grated cheese if you like.

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Avocado Salad with Corn and Tomatoes and Lots of Good Stuff – Vegan

Posted on June 13, 2013 | 3 comments

DSCN0190 DSCN0195 DSCN0194 DSCN0199Most perfect summer salad and it is a vegetarian delight. totally vegan. I am not a vegan so I was grilling steaks for dinner and wanted to do a cold salad on the side. I had 2 beautiful ripe avocados on hand and all the ingredients for this yummy salad.  I had some fresh corn so I just brought the water to a boil threw it in and when it turned yellow took it out and threw it in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.   Of course I love  jalapenos , use your own discretion and this would be amazing without as well but it was kick ass with them.  You can make the salad ahead and let juices meld but don’t add the avocados till you’re ready to serve.  You can give them a little squeeze of fresh lime juice so they won’t turn brown so fast.  I like to serve salad at room temperature, you just don’t get the flavors when it’s too cold. It will keep in fridge for a few days, but you’ll have to take out the leftover avocado since it will turn brown. I cut this salad in 1/2 for the 2 of us. This easily will serve 6 as a side. By the way Joel took a bite but too much healthy stuff going on in here for his liking, although he’s gotten better he’s not quite up to this yet, it’s OK because there was more for me with leftovers.

I was inspired for this recipe from the Barefoot Contessa recipe for Guacamole Salad. The corn was my idea.

Ingredients:

2 cobs of fresh corn ( cook and then shuck corn off the cob) if no fresh corn available use frozen . I use frozen when I have to and 1 small bag is usually sufficient. The frozen corn will defrost very quickly so just take it out and when you mix in with other ingredients it will start to completely thaw by the time you’re ready to serve. You want to serve at room temperature anyway.

1 pint grape tomatoes , halved

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced into small pieces ( app. 1/2 “)

1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup small diced red onion

2 tablespoons minced fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded ( app. 2 small jalapenos) use at your own discretion . Remove Seeds

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice ( 2 limes)

1/4 cup good olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

2 ripe Hass avocados, seeded, peeled and cut into small cubes.

Directions:

Place the tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeno peppers, and lime zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper, garlic and cayenne pepper. Pour over the vegetables. Toss well. In the meanwhile cook the corn , bring water to a boil throw in for a few minutes to turn bright yellow, then I throw in a bowl of ice water for a few minutes to stop the cooking and lock in flavor and color. Then remove corn from cob. I let the salad sit for about an hour before adding avocados into the salad. Just fold avocados into the salad when you’re ready to serve. Check for seasoning and serve at room temperature.

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Posted in Healthy Cooking with Candi, Raw, Salad, salad dressing, sides, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian

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Roasted Cauliflower with Chickpeas – Vegan

Posted on May 24, 2013 | 1 comment

DSCN0013DSCN0019 DSCN0024DSCN0025I am still cooking my way through Gwyneth Paltrow’s new cookbook, ” It’s All Good”.  I have made a few recipes and this is the latest one. I love cauliflower, Dijon mustard and chickpeas, so how bad can this possibly be?

So so good, that’s how good.

I couldn’t get Joel to even touch it except to eat one chickpea and he refused to touch the cauliflower. Oh well, once again, he doesn’t know what he’s missing. This is a perfect side dish and very healthy, to boot. Completely vegan, protein packed and very filling. I’m certain it would be delicious with broccoli as well. Give this a try!

Thanks again to Gwyneth Paltrow for an amazing cookbook with lots of new recipes. It is all good!

Ingredients:

1 14 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained and then dried in a kitchen towel.

1 head of cauliflower, outer leaves removed and discarded, cut into bite size florets.

3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, plus 1/4 cup of olive oil

Kosher salt

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard–I love Maille brand Dijon Mustard for just the right bite, but any Dijon mustard will do.

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard ( if you don’t have whole grain , just use all Dijon) it just adds a nice texture and looks good.

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

freshly ground black pepper

*sprinkling of about 1/4 cup of chopped Italian parsley

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and set the rack in the middle.

Toss the chickpeas and cauliflower together in a large roasting pan with the 3 tablespoons of olive oil and a big pinch of kosher salt. Roast, stirring now and then, until everything starts to brown up nicely, and the cauliflower is quite soft (about 45 minutes.)

Meanwhile, whisk together the mustards, vinegar, and 1/4 cup of olive oil, and a few healthy grinds of black pepper. I didn’t think it needed more salt, the mustard was salty enough as was the cauliflower.  While the chickpeas and cauliflower are still warm, toss them with the mustard dressing and if you like, add a little sprinkling of parsley.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Cinco de Mayo Salad and Green Goddess Dressing

Posted on May 1, 2013 | 2 comments

photo (2)photo (5)photo (2) photo May is here and it brings warm weather and beautiful flowers and springtime has finally arrived. This is a perfect way to bring a little Cinco de Mayo into your home in a pretty healthy way.

Any excuse to celebrate a holiday with a new recipe! Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone and here is a new salad and salad dressing to help celebrate with. While I am not a vegan and don’t always cook that way,  I tried this salad dressing which I found in Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook, “It’s All Good”, and I have to say it is all good! All good ingredients. I am not talking diet food–just good, healthy food, that when eaten in moderation, yields very good results. I used * Vegenaise in making this and highly recommend it in the place of mayonnaise. You can also use yogurt in its place. This is low salt and low sugar. Delicious, fresh ingredients. I made it with the delicious salad listed below. I love love cilantro, and I have to say that if you don’t love cilantro, this one’s not for you. I used half of a jalapeno and it was not hot at all, next time I will use a little more.  I scraped the seeds out. Be very careful handling jalapenos and their seeds–make sure to wash your hands well afterwards and maybe wear gloves to prevent any problems.

This dressing will keep well in a jar for up to a week.

*a little story about Vegenaise, which is lighter than mayonnaise and contains no eggs, milk or animal products. No GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms). Mix it with Dijon for great flavor in the place of real mayo. Extra added bonus is a great jar to store future salad dressings in.

Ingredients:

*this will be vegan if you use Vegenaise

DRESSING INGREDIENTS:

2/3 cup of Vegenaise, yogurt, or mayonnaise

2 scallions, white and light green parts only, chopped

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 4 limes)

1/2 green jalapeno, roughly chopped (you can use more or less, whatever level of heat you like)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon honey

DRESSING DIRECTIONS:

Blend all ingredients in a blender except for olive oil (I open the top and pour oil in after all other ingredients are combined.) It is a beautiful light green color with specks of dark green. Joel was definitely suspicious of the color but he really loved it! Gave it a big thumbs up!

This should serve 4 nicely as a salad but adjust quantities based on how many people you are feeding.

SALAD INGREDIENTS:

About two hearts of romaine Lettuce, shredded

1/2 can of yellow corn (or 2 fresh ears of corn, shucked)

1/2 can black beans (I use organic canned beans and rinse and drain them)

4 scallions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced

1 ripe avocado, cut into chunks

approx. 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes (I used delicious cherry tomatoes, halved)

1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro

Green Goddess Dressing (see above)

If you’re using fresh corn, you’ll have to cook it first. I used the canned version this time. Place the lettuce in a large bowl and dress it with about 1/4 cup of the dressing, just so it’s nicely coated. I then added beans, tomatoes, scallions, avocado, cilantro and corn. Add a little more salad dressing, and serve immediately. Joel likes a lot more dressing on his salad so I served with dressing on the side. And no he didn’t eat all that stuff in the salad; he just ate lettuce and tomatoes…he really doesn’t know what he’s missing!

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Roasted Asparagus with Simple Lemon Vinaigrette- Springtime is here

Posted on April 8, 2013 | 2 comments

photoI wish it were warmer but I can feel it coming, any day now . If you read my blog you know how very much I love asparagus and I am always looking for new things to do with it. Love the woody fresh flavor they bring with them. Asparagus may be a year round presence these days, but the “real” deal appears each and every spring. It’s only for a few months that we’ll have these beautiful spears. I love them barely cooked with a simple delicious vinaigrette, love them in an omelette, salads, pastas and just plain roasted . Just don’t overcook them, that’s sad , they go limp and stringy and just plain old bad. I love them just cooked and thrown into my Quinoa Salad. Just throw them into a pot of boiling salted water for a minute till they turn bright green, remove and cool down and mix in with the quinoa for a delicious addition.  This recipe below is to roast asparagus in the oven and top it with this simple lemon vinaigrette. It stands on its own as a side dish or you can add it to any salad.

Ingredients:

3/4 – 1 lb. fresh asparagus, remove woody stems and if they’re very thick take a vegetable peeler to them. I usually just break off the bottoms where they will just snap off when you bend them, or use a knife.

olive oil ( a good glug)

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

Vinaigrette:

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 lemon, juiced

1 tablespoon olive oil

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

*this can easily be doubled

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

Break off the ends of the asparagus and if they’re very thick, peel them a little bit with a vegetable peeler. Place the asparagus on a baking sheet, drizzle with a good glug of good olive oil, then toss to coat the asparagus completely. Spread the asparagus in a single layer and sprinkle liberally with Salt and Pepper. Roast the asparagus until tender but still firm and moist. About 20 – 25 minutes.

Make the vinaigrette: in a small bowl, vigorously whisk together the mustard and lemon juice. Slowly drizzle the olive oil in, whisking quickly so olive oil will emulsify into the juice mixture. Season with Salt and Pepper. Serve warm, at room temperature or cold. If you refrigerate, take out for about an hour so it’s not super cold when you serve.

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Posted in Raw, Salad, salad dressing, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian

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Farro with Roasted Mushrooms

Posted on October 12, 2012 | 1 comment

Farro is one of the oldest grains cultivated by humans. It was originally found in the Middle East, and is now primarily grown in Italy. Farro is delicious and a good source of fiber, as well as protein and iron. It is a perfect source of protein for vegetarians. Farro looks and tastes a bit like brown rice, but it has a more fibrous texture and a nutty taste with hints of oats and barley. It holds its texture better than arborio rice when cooked, which makes it a perfect alternative to risotto. It has a crunchy, nutty complex flavor and is low in gluten. This evening I prepared it like a salad at room temperature. I then added it to my Caesar salad and it was wonderful. It is great on greens or as a side dish. I am going to be making this wonderful grain more and more and I especially can’t wait to make it for my vegetarian daughter.

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked farro (I used Italian pearled farro)

Kosher salt

1/2 lb. mushrooms (I used cremini, but a mix of wild or any kind you prefer would be good too)

Olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

* finely chopped or crumbled parmesan – this is totally optional but added a delicious flavor

* a little chopped fresh parsley (I didn’t have any so I didn’t use, but it would be nice)

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan,  prepare the farro according to directions on bag.  I bought the italian pearled type and it didn’t call for soaking, but a lot of farro needs to be soaked prior to cooking. I would suggest buying the type that doesn’t unless you have a lot of time.

While the farro is cooking, wipe and trim the mushrooms. I gave them a rough chop but left a lot of larger bite-sized pieces, don’t chop too small.   On a rimmed baking sheet spread the mushrooms out and drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to your liking (you can always add salt at the end). Toss gently to distribute everything, spread the mushrooms out evenly on the baking sheet and put in the oven for about 30 minutes. I like the mushrooms crispy around the edges.

Once the farro is cooked, drain it well, and allow it to cool down. I took the mushrooms off of the baking sheet with a slotted spatula, just to remove a bit of the liquid. When the farro and mushrooms have cooled down to room temperature or barely warm, I combined them in a serving bowl. I then add the lemon juice and I added 2 tablespoons of olive oil, but if that is not enough, you can add more a little bit at a time. There is some oil that gets left on mushrooms and it is enough. If you’d like, add the parmesan and parsley and taste for salt and pepper at this time. I served at room temperature. I also think it would be delicious with some chopped vegetables added, completely up to you. Joel even ate it.

* should serve 4 as a generous side dish

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Very Nutty Pasta – Vegetarian (can be Vegan) – Foriana Sauce

Posted on October 7, 2012 | 1 comment

This pasta dish is a sweet, salty, nutty, think out of the box kind of pasta.  I made it alongside chicken for dinner and it is a most delicious side dish which is completely vegetarian and if you leave out the parmesan it can also be completely vegan. It is perfect as a main vegetarian dish, too. Did it all in the food processor, cooked the pasta and tossed the nuts in some olive oil with raisins. The nuts have a lot of substance and add a lot of flavor to the spaghetti. Something a little different  and a rather adventurous pasta for sure. This recipe could probably yield enough for 2 boxes of pasta depending on how much sauce you like. I made 3/4 of a pound of pasta and didn’t use all the Foriana sauce. Original recipe is from Food52 Blog.  It can also be made with anchovies if you’re so inclined. (I would add about 5 and chop them up but I left them out this time.) If you are going to keep nut mixture in fridge without pasta I would put a thin layer of olive oil over it. It would keep like this in refrigerator for at least a week. When you’re ready to use it, bring it to room temperature, and heat it up well. You may need to add a little more olive oil to the pasta later; you’ll have to check the consistency. Think Nut Pesto.

Ingredients:

1 cup walnuts

1 cup pine nuts

10 cloves of garlic (nice size cloves)

3 teaspoons dried oregano

1/3 cup of olive oil

1/2 cup golden raisins

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

3/4 lb. spaghetti (I used linguine fini but anything will do just fine)

Parmesan cheese for sprinkling, if you like

Directions:

Place the walnuts, pine nuts and garlic in a food processor and pulse to a fine chop. Add the oregano and pulse a few more times until combined together.

Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat, add the nut mixture, along with the raisins, and salt and pepper to taste (you will need a fair amount). Cook for about 5 minutes, being sure not to burn. Set aside.

I cooked pasta, reserving about a cup of pasta water in the event I needed to add liquid to my sauce. After cooking pasta according to directions on box ( al dente), I put pasta back in pot and started to add nut mixture to pasta; I also added a little pasta water till I got the consistency I wanted, tasted for salt and pepper and plated it up. I added Parmesan at the table as well as red pepper flakes. It was a very comforting, different pasta meal. The anchovies would certainly give it more bite but I  decided to keep it vegetarian.

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Roasted Potatoes with Mustard and Onions

Posted on September 13, 2012 | 1 comment

I saw this on the Barefoot Contessa TV show and thought this would be so tasty. It was! I made it with chicken and steak, but honestly this would be great alongside any dish. Very easy and pretty perfect. This was how I prepared it. It served 6 very well, and it could probably serve 8 – 10 as a side dish. A perfect dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas or any dinner party.

Ingredients:

2 – 2 1/2 lbs. Yukon gold potatoes

2 medium size yellow onions

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard

Kosher Salt – about 2 teaspoons

Freshly Ground Black Pepper – a few good grinds of the pepper mill

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the potatoes in quarters, and then I cut them again, I found they crisped up better smaller.  Place on a very large sheet pan, do not crowd. I actually used two baking sheets for this amount of potatoes.  Remove the ends of the onions, peel them, and cut them in half, slice them crosswise in app. 1/4 ” slices to make half rounds. Toss the onions and potatoes on the sheet pan. ( I also sprayed pans generously with Pam cooking spray)

In a separate bowl, with a wire whisk mix the mustard and the olive oil, and pour over potatoes. With clean hands I mixed up everything on sheet pan, then sprinkled 2 teaspoons kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper on the potatoes and mixed again.  I baked for about an hour at 400, or until the potatoes were lightly browned on the outside and tender on the inside. I prefer a little crispy, do them however you like. I tossed a few times with a metal spatula during cooking process.

Taste for salt, and you can always add more salt at the end. 

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Corn Soup with Roasted Peppers and Tomatoes (can be vegetarian)

Posted on September 4, 2012 | Leave a comment

Summer’s bounty in a pot. Out in Colorado we get this local corn from Olathe, Colorado. It is known for its sweetness and despite the drought and heat conditions this summer, it’s as sweet as ever. I am not sure where else they ship to but if you see Olathe Corn buy it. Obviously all local corn is sweet and delicious , so wherever you live pick some up.  I picked up 5 ears the other day as it just came in off the truck at Whole Foods. So what was I going to do with 5 ears of corn and 2 people to eat it?  I had seen this recipe and decided to make it my own with a few substitutions here and there. The original came from The Sussman Brother’s Cookbook. I used less cream, and since I only had 5 ears of corn, I couldn’t garnish the soup with more corn, so I would suggest an extra ear of corn when you are buying. I also made it with a bit of kick, but you can use less chili powder, or none at all.  I love soup all year round and when I saw this recipe using all these fresh ingredients I knew I had to make it. And yes, Joel loved it.

Here is my variation on the Sussman Brothers’ recipe.

Ingredients:

2 ripe but firm tomatoes

Kernels from 6 ears of corn (the sixth will be used for garnish. I used 5 and didn’t garnish.)

2 red bell peppers

1 yellow onion, chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 1/2 – 3 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth for my vegetarian friends)

1 tsp. chipotle chili powder * (This will give it a good kick. If you prefer less heat, then use less or eliminate all together if you don’t like any heat. I like the smoky heat the chili powder gives the soup.)

1 /2 cup heavy cream (you can use more but I found that 1/2 cup is sufficient)

2 tbsp. kosher salt

*Sliced avocado for garnish is always nice if you’d like

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Put tomatoes in a glass baking dish lightly sprayed with Pam. Roast tomatoes in oven till skin starts to darken, about 1/2 hour. (You just want to be able to remove skins easily.) Remove from oven and allow to cool. Keep oven on.

I put my red bell peppers on the grill and char them, and then when they cooled off I remove charred outer skin, and cut them into pieces.

I removed corn from the cobs using my bundt pan. Then spread the corn in a single layer on a baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil, and roasted corn for about 15 – 20 minutes in the 375 degree oven until the corn starts to turn a golden brown color.

Remove skins from tomatoes, remove charred skins from peppers while the corn is cooking in the oven.

In a soup pot  (Le Creuset), put 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Over medium heat, put in onions and let them become translucent, then add in the garlic (a quick stir) then add the tomatoes, peppers and corn. Add enough broth to cover vegetables (about 2 – 2 1/2 cups) and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until all veggies are very tender. I let it simmer for about a half hour. Add broth if you need to. Add chili powder if you’re using it and salt. I let it sit for a bit off the heat and cool. Then using my immersion blender I start to blend soup until it’s smooth, adding the cream a little at a time. (I only used 1/2 cup of cream for entire pot of soup and it was perfectly smooth and rich.) Taste for salt. If you’d like, garnish with additional corn, or avocado slices, or both. I served it hot. It will probably serve 6 nicely.

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Orzo Salad – and a delicious red wine vinaigrette

Posted on July 13, 2012 | 1 comment

Fresh Basil from the garden

This is a wonderful recipe I am passing on, the original was from Giada de Laurentis and I’ve since doctored it up to suit my tastes.  Upon going to prepare recipe I realized that I didn’t have any garbanzo beans so I substituted red kidney beans.  Feel free to add and subtract ingredients and  do whatever you like with this delightful recipe.  Sometimes you feel like pasta but not really and this is it.   It is perfect at room temperature. What I mostly like about this recipe is that you can use what you have in the pantry and in the house. I have to say the mint and the basil gave it a wonderful fresh flavor and I wouldn’t omit them.  Super Fresh! The vinaigrette is delicious and fresh tasting as well, so give it a try. It also cooks up very quickly which is always a plus for me.

Ingredients: 

4 cups chicken broth ( to keep it vegetarian just use vegetable broth) I like the broth rather than plain water . It adds extra flavor to the orzo.

1 1/2 cups orzo

1 15 oz. can of garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed , I used 1 can of Red Kidney Beans because I wanted to make recipe and didn’t have Garbanzo Beans, it was just fine. Any type of bean is fine.

1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes, if you can get those great little yellow ones do so. Halve the tomatoes. Use red and yellow. So pretty!

*app. 3/4 cup chopped red onion — If you don’t like onion you can omit it or add a little less

1/2 – 3/4 lb. feta cheese ( sometimes I use crumbled and sometimes I cube it) makes no difference ( I love the cheese but you can omit)

*1/2 bag frozen green peas ( also optional) didn’t use this time–optional

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

3/4  to 1 cup of the Red Wine Vinaigrette dressing ( listed below) but you’ll use as much or as little as you like

Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste

Directions for the Orzo:

Bring broth to a boil in a heavy large saucepan. Stir in the orzo. Cover partially and cook until orzo is tender but still firm, stirring frequently, about 7 – 10 minutes. Drain the orzo as you would pasta in a colander. Transfer the orzo to a large wide bowl and toss and let the orzo cool down. Set aside to cool completely.

When orzo is cooled down, toss the orzo with the bean, tomatoes, onion, basil , mint and enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad, to taste with additional salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature.

Red Wine Vinaigrette Ingredients:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Mix the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper in the blender. While machine is running , slowly add in the olive oil. Season to taste, with more salt and pepper if desired.

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