Holy moly, this recipe. A friend recently recommended it to me. I have all of the Barefoot Contessa’s cookbooks, so I’m not sure how I missed this one. It’s in her book Parties, if you have it. The link to the original recipe can be found HERE, but let me tell you what I love about it and give you a few suggestions.
One, this is the perfect summer side dish. With burgers, a grilled steak, or I’d just eat this on its own, it’s that good.
Two, you can use whatever vegetables you have in your fridge. Super versatile and great to clean out food you need to use up.
Below I’ve pasted the recipe. In parentheses I’ve added what I’ve done differently. Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa, is the queen, so by all means try her version first if you’d like. Seriously, try this dish and let me know what you think. I’m addicted.
- 1 small eggplant, peeled and 3/4-inch diced (I used a cucumber – unpeeled – instead)
- 1 red bell pepper, 1-inch diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, 1-inch diced
- 1 red onion, peeled and 1-inch diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/3 cup good olive oil (I used less, maybe 1/4 cup)
- 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 pound orzo
- For the Dressing:
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons) (I used 3)
- 1/3 cup good olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- To Assemble:
- 4 scallions, minced (white and green parts)
- 1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts), toasted
- 3/4 pound good feta, 1/2-inch diced (not crumbled) (I’ve used feta once, goat cheese another time. Both times we used crumbled and way less cheese. Maybe 1/2 of this. When I tried to use 3/4 pound, everyone felt it was far too much cheese.)
- 15 fresh basil leaves, cut into chiffonade
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the cucumber, bell peppers, onion, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, and pepper on a large baking sheet. Roast for 40 minutes, until browned, turning once with a spatula.
Meanwhile, cook the orzo in boiling salted water for 7 to 9 minutes, until tender. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl.
Add the roasted vegetables to the pasta, scraping all the liquid and seasonings from the roasting pan into the pasta bowl.
For the dressing, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper and pour on the pasta and vegetables. Let cool to room temperature, then add the scallions, pignolis, feta, and basil. Check the seasonings, and serve at room temperature.
I think this recipe is a keeper for sure. Hope you love it!
