Easy Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad with Spinach and Feta -

Easy Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad with Spinach and Feta

A delicious lemon orzo pasta salad with lemon-garlic aioli and spinach and feta.

5 from 1 vote

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Course: lunch, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: feta, Lemon, orzo, pasta, spinach

Prep Time: 25

Cook Time: 15

Servings: people

Calories: 240kcal

Author: Candace Bourzac

Ingredients

1 cup dry orzo pasta
2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
1 poblano
3/4 cup green onion
1 cup spinach, rough chopped
1 cup feta, crumbled
3 oz lemon juice, fresh squeezed
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed

Instructions

Measure out 1 cup of dry orzo into a medium-sized sauce pan. Add 2 cups water. Set to boil on medium heat. Stir intermittently so pasta does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
While orzo is cooking, chop the poblano, green onion and spinach. For the spinach, I grab a large handful and do a rough chop. It doesn't need to be perfectly chopped into tiny pieces.
Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a medium-sized saute pan. Add the poblano and stir a bit so the oil gets all over the poblano. Saute until the poblano is soft and a bit blackened. You don't need to babysit it, but you do want to stir intermittently so it does not burn. (Poblano gets quite smoky when sauteed, and it releases capsaicin. If this bothers you, you can always microwave it to soften it.)
Into a large bowl, add the 3/4 cup green onion, 1 cup spinach, and sauteed poblano.
In a small bowl, add the 3 oz of lemon juice and 1/2 cup mayonnaise. Whisk together until incorporated. It may be a bit lumpy, but it should smooth out as you continue to whisk vigorously. (Feel free to add the ingredients to a food processor and make the aioli this way. It will result in a smoother sauce.) You won't notice this so much once you add the garlic. Add the 2-3 cloves of pressed garlic and stir to incorporate.
Once the orzo is done cooking, drain any remaining water, then stir in a bit of butter or olive oil to keep the pasta from sticking together. Transfer into the large mixing bowl with the poblano, green onion and spinach. Add 1 cup of feta cheese and stir to incorporate everything.
Add the lemon garlic aioli and stir until the sauce is incorporated into the pasta salad. Chill for at least 60 minutes before serving.

Notes

Store lemon orzo pasta in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
This recipe is easy to make ahead. Can be made up to one day ahead of when you will need. It's best to make it no less than one hour before you will need it.
The garlic can be chopped and not pressed if you do not have a garlic press, it will just be a bit chunkier.
Can use a different pasta, such as misi or midolline, or even corkscrew pasta.
Poblano can be smoky when you saute it, and it does bother some people. You can replace the poblano with a bell pepper, or you can microwave it to soften it before you add it to the pasta. Just be sure to cut it up first.

The nutrition information listed is for comparison purposes only and may vary based on individual cooking styles and measurements. The nutritional information calculated uses a third-party algorithm. Please consult a health professional for any nutrition guidance.

Nutrition