Tomorrow, I’m riding in the NYC Bike Tour with a group of friends. So tonight, I had them over for a preparatory pasta dinner. The idea is to have pasta so I decided on a three course pasta tasting. The first course would be a salad, yet still a pasta, but proportionately heavier on the vegetables because two more pasta courses would follow.
Wilted Spinach and Tomato Orzo Salad
- 4 oz dry Whole Wheat Orzo
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 10 ounce package of pre-washed spinach
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 generous pinches of salt
- 6 Campari Tomatoes, cut into 6-8 wedges each
- 2 teaspoon good Olive Oil
- 1 tablespoons Aged Cherry Flavored Balsamic (from O & Co.)
- 3 tablespoons garlic cream (from the potato post)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
1. Cook Orzo to package instructions. Rinse with cold water, drain, and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in a large pan. Place spinach in the pan. Sprinkle with garlic and and 2 pinches of salt. Cover and turn off the heat. Let sit for 5 minutes.
3. Plate spinach. Place tomatoes on top. Place Orzo on top of tomatoes. Drizzle with Cherry Balsamic and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Top with garlic cream. (I like serving it like this but it must be tossed before eating it.)
This starter was a real hit, polished off in minutes. I’m definitely going to make this one again.