I’ve made this salad from the cookbook Super Natural Everyday a few times now. I love how this recipe doesn’t need a lot of time to prepare it so it’s prefect for a busy day. Served with some fresh garlic bread, it’s even more perfect for my family. I used sour cream instead of creme fraiche because I can’t find the latter here and didn’t think ahead to make it.
Broccoli Pesto Orzo Salad
- Salt
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat Orzo
- 5 cups Broccoli, cut into small florets and stems
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 2/3 cup Pine Nuts, carefully toasted
- 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
- juice from 1 Lemon
- 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/4 cup Creme Fraiche
- zest from 1 Lemon
- 1 Avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
- Bring a large pot of water to boil. Salt generously, add the orzo and cook according to the package instructions. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain well again.
- In the meantime, cook the broccoli by bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil in a large pot. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the broccoli. Cover and cook for 1 minute, just long enough to take off the raw edge. Quickly drain the broccoli in a strainer and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Drain well and set aside.
- To made the pesto, process the garlic in a food processor for a couple pulses. Add 2 cups of the cooked broccoli, pine nuts, parmesan, 1/4 tsp salt and 2 tbsp of the lemon juice and pulse to combine. Drizzle the olive oil and creme fraiche and process until smooth.
- Just before serving, toss the orzo and remaining cooked broccoli florets with about two thirds of the broccoli pesto and the lemon zest. Thin with a bit of warm water if you like. Taste and adjust if needed. You may want to add a little more salt or lemon juice, or pesto. Gently fold in the avocado and top with remaining pine nuts.
