Tomato and Basil Orzo Salad
"This is from sunset.
Posting for safe keeping
Times are approximate
Notes: Serve this warm salad as a main dish for a light lunch or as a dinner companion to grilled steak, chicken, or fish."
photo by Obag6142
- Ready In:
- 35mins
- Ingredients:
- 8
- Serves:
-
4-6
ingredients
- 1 1⁄2 cups dried orzo pasta
- 1 1⁄4 lbs firm-ripe tomatoes, at room temperature
- 3⁄4 cup chopped fresh basil leaf
- 1 -2 garlic clove, peeled and minced
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- about 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper
directions
- In a 3- to 4-quart pan over high heat, bring 1 1/2 to 2 quarts water to a boil. Add orzo and cook until barely tender to bite, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, rinse and core tomatoes; chop and place in a large bowl. Add basil, garlic, olive oil, and vinegar; mix gently.
- Drain pasta well and add to tomato mixture. Mix, adding parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper to taste.
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Reviews
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Simple and fabulous! Could easily omit the cheese to make this vegan. Recipe saved for sure.
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Brilliant flavours in this lovely salad! I often make a similar dish but have never added the balsamic vinegar and boy was it good! I was recently lucky enough to visit Italy and this brought back great memories so thanks! -
There's a reason why this recipe has been posted for just one month yet there are already five 5 star reviews. It's an excellent dish with strong flavors reminiscent of Italian cooking; plus, it's easy to make. I made the recipe as a side dish to grilled chicken -- a perfect bbq menu. I used baby cherub tomatoes sliced in half instead of larger tomatoes. I also used less basil, 1/2 cup instead of 3/4 cup. Delicious. -
This is really really good. I loved the flavors, and added some fresh pieces of mozzarella bocconcini to it right when the orzo was warm but not hot to make it melt completely. I do understand why white balsamic vinegar has been made tho, the darker color is a bit odd :D -
I used firm-ripe roma tomatoes. This is very yummy and so easy. Thanks WickedCook :) Made for Photo tag
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Tweaks
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What a wonderful idea, to make Insalata Caprese (one of my all-time favorites) into a pasta salad! I made this as written, except that I subbed reduced fat Italian cheese blend (mozzarella, provolone, and parmesan) for the Parmesan cheese. It was excellent--I can't say enough good things about this salad! The garlic I used was on the strong side, and I used 2 largeish cloves, so the garic was fairly prominent. If you aren't a big fan of garlic, go with one small clove of a milder garlic. Thank you so much for sharing, Wicked Cook! Made for Everyday is a Holiday tag game.
