Orzo with Peas

My oh my!  Why oh why?  With the end of the school year, everyone and everything gets crammed into a very short period of time: games, tournaments, recitals, wax museums, projects, speeches, graduation, book club… shall I continue?  Do you have others to add to the list?

Orzo is quick to make and yummy to eat, especially in between all these end of school year activities.  This recipe was based on a Spring Pea Orzo in Southern Living however I omitted the green peas.  Since most recipes only use half of the box of orzo, you can make one of these next: Orzo Salad; Orzo with Arugula, Dried Cherries and Ricotta; or Roasted Shrimp with Orzo.

Ingredients

1. 3 to 4 lemons (1/2 c lemon juice)  

   

   Orzo with Peas

2. 8 ounces uncooked orzo pasta
3. 1/4 cup minced shallot or red onion
4. 2 T extra virgin olive oil
5. 1 T Dijon mustard
6. 1/2 t table salt
7. 1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
8. 1 – 1 ½ cup snow peas, blanched and chopped
9. 1 – 1 ½ cup sugar snap peas, blanched and chopped
10. 1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Cut lemons in half; squeeze juice from lemons to equal 1/2 cup.

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Whisk together shallots, olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper, and lemon juice. Toss together pasta and shallot mixture. Cover with plastic wrap, and chill 1 to 48 hours.

Toss together pasta, snow peas, sugar snap peas, and almonds just before serving.  Add salt, pepper, and additional lemon juice to taste.