Food from my friend: Sunshiny Orzo Salad

Not only am I blessed with good friends, I am blessed with friends who love food as much as I do and, who are also good cooks! Pre-COVID we had regular gatherings that focused on themed meals but even before that, my friend, Naomi, often brought this orzo salad to our potlucks. It had such a bright, lemony taste that I nicknamed it "sunshiny" orzo salad and the name just stuck. I wasn't able to duplicate it to my liking since the measurements aren't exactly precise, but when we had a small gathering a couple of weeks ago, Naomi gave me details on how she made it at that time. 

Here's the cast--I forgot to include the sugar though!

I zested two lemons into a dressing shaker.

Then I juiced them. 

Since I got approximately 1/4 cup of lemon juice, I added the same amount of avocado oil, 1/4 cup of sugar, and a generous pinch of salt. I shook the mixture vigorously and put it aside for a while.

In the meantime, I cooked the orzo according to the package's directions, drained it, and then let it cool in a very large bowl. Every now and then I would toss the orzo around to keep it from clumping and to help it cool faster.

Naomi uses cucumbers but I didn't have any. She doesn't usually add basil but I had some that I wanted to use up. I wanted to make sure I didn't overpower the dressing because the lemon really needs to be the star. I ended up using half a yellow pepper, half a red pepper and about 1/4 cup of chopped red onion as well. I had eleven (so precise!) of a Kahuku gold cherry tomato--I cut them into fourths so they would go farther. They have a nice sweetness to them.

When the orzo was still warm, I added the veggies, gave the dressing another shake, and poured it over. I added some black pepper, gave everything a good mix and then added a bit more salt. I love that this salad tastes better if it's allowed to sit so into the fridge it went until Father's Day lunch the next day. Just before serving, I gave it a good mix and squeezed a little more fresh lemon juice over it. It was delish and lived up to its sunshiny name! Thanks, Naomi!

Here's the promised recipe (as I made it):

Sunshiny Orzo Salad

Courtesy of Naomi F.

Ingredients:

1 box orzo, cooked according to package directions

1/2 red pepper, chopped

1/2 yellow pepper, chopped

1/4 c. chopped red onion

11 cherry tomatoes, quartered

8 leaves of basil, sliced thinly

zest and juice of two lemons, about 1/4 c. juice (if there isn't enough juice, apple cider vinegar can be added)

1/4 c. avocado oil (equivalent to the lemon juice)

1/4 c. sugar (some honey can be substituted, if desired)

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Cook, drain, and cool the orzo.
2. Make the dressing: zest and juice the two lemons, add oil in the same amount as there is juice. Add the sugar and a generous pinch of salt. Shake vigorously to emulsify, then set aside. 
3. Chop veggies and add them to the cooled orzo.
4. Pour dressing over orzo and veggies, mix well.
5. Taste and adjust seasonings.