Afternoon everyone! Today I am sharing with you my recipe for orzo caprese salad. I have a slight obsession with anything that has to do with the word "caprese". It all started 6 years ago when I visited Italy, and now I can't live without it in my life!
Without further ado, head over to your kitchen and lets get cooking!
Start by putting half of a 1lb box of Barilla orzo into a pot of boiling water with a good pinch of salt. Prepare according to package directions. While that is going, dice up a pack of fresh mozzarella pearls, and equal amount of cherry tomatoes. Also, chop up as much fresh basil as you'd like according to the taste outcome you want in the end. I chopped a little less than the mozzarella and cherry tomatoes.
The next step is to make your balsamic vinaigrette for the salad. In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons good quality olive oil, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
Stir together ingredients until the vinaigrette comes together. It will take a minute of continuous stirring to get it to this stage, so don't worry if it doesn't come straight together for you! Just keep stirring, just keep stirring, stirring, stirring...
Once you have your vinaigrette done, your orzo should be done as well. After draining, I usually let my orzo sit for about half an hour in the refrigerator to cool down so when I add the mozzarella, it doesn't melt.
Stir in the vinaigrette.
Then add in the basil, mozzarella, and tomatoes.
Stir.
And serve!
This dish is so great in the summer, and it is also great to take to BBQ's with friends and family! If your not the biggest fan of orzo, you can also make this dish with quinoa. Just use 1 cup of quinoa, and cook it to package instructions, and let cool before stirring in the other ingredients.
I hope you enjoyed this delicious and easy recipe! 'Til next time friends!
-A
