Lemon, with fresh basil and parsley, give this light dish its summer-y taste that makes for the perfect side all season long!

Lemon, with fresh basil and parsley, give this light dish its summer-y taste that makes for the perfect side all season long!

I love pasta, and definitely don’t discriminate against any shape, but this time of year, orzo is one of my F A V E S. It is so light tasting, and works well in so many pasta salad recipes – like this Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad.

When we first moved into our home [almost four years ago, wutttttt] the previous owners had planted a lemon and a lime tree in the backyard, and I so badly wanted to keep them. But they were in the middle of the backyard, which made no sense at all. Plus with our puppos, I was pretty sure they’d easily ruin them, so away they went. It was a sad time, and I wish we still had those lemon and lime trees because then I could just go outside and pick my own fresh citrus all summer long for beautiful salads whenever I felt like it!

But I can’t, so moving on…It’s just as easy to buy them at the grocery, and since they’re in abundance this time of year, lemons tend to be on sale. I love adding lemons to my water, tea, and summer salads like this orzo salad recipe.

Orzo is so easy to cook and is ready to GO in like 8-9 minutes, which is perfect because I’m impatient sometimes. I love to make a quick little vinaigrette using olive oil, fresh lemon, salt and pepper and call it a day. Sometimes less is more, and these simple ingredients really bring out the flavor of summer in all of 15 minutes.

Yesssss. Fifteen minutes! Boil water, add orzo, make vinaigrette, prep tomatoes and herbs. Drain pasta, mix it all together. dig ~~the eff~~ in!

TIP:

You can eat this Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad as soon as it’s done, but the longer it chills, the more the flavors marry together, and it’s ah-may-zing. In my opinion anyway. You will want to add a little more olive oil right before serving if you make in advance; the yummy orzo soaks up the vinaigrette like a sponge (or like…orzo? I digress), and don’t no one want a dry orzo salad at their party.

This recipe calls to make the whole box of orzo; I grew up in a family of six so I can’t help myself, pasta almost always gets made in its entirety (hello, leftovers), but makes for the perfect side dish to any protein.

If you’re going to a summer shingdig over the weekend, bring this pasta salad, and everyone will love you. If you’ve got vegetarian friends or family like we do, they can always fill up on this fresh Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad. It’s seriously perfect for the masses, friends!

lemon orzo pasta salad [weekend eats]

Serves: 10-12

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad: Lemon, with fresh basil and parsley, give this light dish its summer-y taste that makes for the perfect side all season long!

Ingredients

1-lb box orzo pasta
2 tbsp Kosher salt
lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
juice of 2 lemons
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup green onions, discard white part
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped

Instructions

To a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a rolling boil and add Kosher salt. Add the orzo pasta to the water and stir. Cook for 9 minutes, al dente. So just a little firm.
While the orzo is cooking, zest and juice the lemons into a large mixing bowl, and whisk in the olive oil.
When the orzo is done cooking, drain pasta, and toss it with the lemon vinaigrette, while it’s still hot. Mix well. Allow the pasta and sauce mixture to cool while you chop the rest of the ingredients.
Mix in the tomatoes, green onions, parsley and basil.
Can be served immediately. For best results, refrigerate for at least one hour. Can be made 2-3 days in advance.