Super Green Orzo Pasta Salad

A flavour packed orzo pasta salad perfect for a meal prep friendly lunch or dinner!

Done in 20 minutes

Serves 2

Dish by Mia Jacobs

Ingredients

For the roasted veg

75gtenderstem broccoli

1/2courgette, diced

1garlic clove, grated

1/2 tspchilli flakes

to tastesalt and freshly cracked pepper

For the kale pesto

50gcavolo nero

17gbasil

3 tbspnutritional yeast

1garlic clove

1 tspwhite miso paste

1/4-1/2lemon, juice

a pinchchilli flakes

50mlolive oil

to tastesalt and freshly cracked pepper to taste

To assemble

150gorzo

75gfrozen peas

50gvegan feta

30grocket leaves

1/2veg stock cube or salt

A super green pasta salad with orzo, a pesto inspired sauce, roasted charred broccoli + courgette and crumbled vegan feta. Beats any pesto pasta you can buy in the supermarkets, or restaurant for that matter!

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees or 180 fan. Cut the broccoli and courgette into bite size pieces then drizzle over the olive oil and season with chilli flakes, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss to coat everything then roast for 15 mins until soft and charred.

Bring some water to the boil in a medium saucepan. Add the cavolo nero leaves and blanch for 30 seconds. Remove and rinse in cold water to stop the leaves cooking, reserving the cooking water for the orzo.

Add the blanched leaves to a blender with the rest of the ingredients for the pesto. Loosen with more oil and a splash of water if needed. Season to taste.

Add the stock cube or salt and orzo once the water is at a rolling boil. Stir then cook until soft (you don't want it to be al dente as you'll be rinsing it with cold water to stop the cooking process). In the last few minutes, add the peas and cook with the orzo.

Drain the orzo and peas and rinse with cold water until the pasta is cold, or room temperature.

Add to a bowl with the roasted veg, kale pesto, vegan feta and fresh rocket. Season with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and some lemon zest. If making ahead of time, add the rocket just before serving.

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Mia Jacobs

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Mia is a self-taught cook with an obsession with street food and an absolute hatred for parsnips. Before joining Twisted Green, Mia founded an online vegan cooking school in the midst of the global pandemic and began teaching people all over the world how to cook incredible vegan food from the comfort of their own homes. Her mission was, and still is, to help transform kitchens everywhere from a daunting space to one that’s filled with the irresistible aroma of frying garlic, and some very special plant-based grub. She also believes that crisps and hummus are a gift to humanity.