Best Orzo Salad with Spinach

Best Orzo Salad with Spinach is very light, tender to the bite and tastes amazing with a mix of savory flavors all in one bite!  Loaded with ribbons of fresh spinach, semolina orzo pasta, kalamata olives and feta cheese, and tossed with a delicious vinaigrette, makes this the Best Orzo Salad EVER! 

Eat this salad alone or serve as a side dish to compliment any other main dish.  This orzo salad with spinach is one you’ll want to make all year long!

 

 

 

 

My daughter Lizzy first saw this orzo salad at Whole Foods and she would buy it often.  So I decided to taste it myself and knew I could duplicate it and save her some money and trips to Whole Foods. 

It was a sold in a small container for $8.00 dollars, which was a bit expensive for a college student.

 

When you make this salad yourself, it is definitely fresher and more cost effective!

Full flavor and so tasty, she ran to pick up the entire salad, filling up 4 containers for her to have for the week.  The kalamata olives along with the feta cheese and spinach definitely adds depth of flavor to this salad.  

The outcome was truly amazing!

 

 

The only thing you will need to cook with this recipe, is of course, the orzo pasta!  

And that takes a few minutes for it to come to a tender bite.  Do not over cook the orzo pasta or you will end up with a mushy texture and it will not be good. 

Once the orzo pasta is ready, the rest of the ingredients are finely chopped and added, then tossed with a simple vinaigrette.

No need to add in a ton of ingredients to achieve the texture and flavors with this one.  This orzo salad is simple yet it offers a wonderful balance of flavors!

And for our gluten-free friends, make this salad using Gluten-Free Orzo!

 

 

 

Also, I find it’s best to let this orzo salad chill and marinate for at least an hour before serving. This will allow all the ingredients to infuse together, making it much more flavorful.

Kalamata olives, along with feta cheese, spinach,  garlic, red onion, extra virgin olive oil and white balsamic vinegar give this orzo salad its wonderful depth of savory flavors.

It is SO good, it’s perfect to take it with you to work for lunch the next day!

Best orzo salad with spinach is easy enough to make a day in advance for a party or a luncheon, and serve when guests arrive.  Amazingly light and festive, definitely worthy for all year entertaining. 

Best of all, this orzo salad will stay fresh up to 4 days.  So you can eat it for days!

ENJOY!!

 

 

 

     … Please PIN ….and SHARE!  ..Thanks so much!

 

Also,try our Orzo Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette. 

  

Yield: 4 to 5

Best Orzo Salad with Spinach

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Best Orzo Salad with Spinach is light, refreshing and tastes amazing with a mix of savory flavors all in one bite! Loaded with ribbons of fresh spinach, semolina orzo pasta, kalamata olives and feta cheese, and tossed with a delicious vinaigrette, makes this orzo salad with spinach the Best Orzo Salad EVER!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 6 minutes

Total Time 16 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound (8-ounce) orzo pasta
• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup red onion - minced
• 1 garlic clove - minced or crushed
• 1/4 cup celery - minced
• 2 to 3 handfuls of baby spinach (discard large stems) -rolled and sliced into ribbons
• 2 Tbsp. crumbled feta cheese
• 4 kalamata olives, pits removed - minced
• fresh black pepper and salt to taste

Instructions

1. Fill a medium sauce pan with water, add 1 teaspoon of salt to the water and bring to a full boil. Add the orzo pasta and cook the orzo according to the directions on the box, or until it is tender to the bite. Do not over cook the pasta, or you will end up with mushy orzo and that's not good for this salad.
2. Drain, and run under cold water for a few seconds to stop the cooking. Drain well. Then transfer orzo to a mixing bowl.
3. Add all the rest of the ingredients and toss unitl it is well combined. Taste the salad, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Transfer to a salad bowl, cover with clear wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving. Best served chilled and stays fresh up to 4 days.
5. Serves 4 to 5

Notes

You can add as much baby spinach as desired. Recipe is original by Anna.

 

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Happy Cooking!

xo Anna and Liz