Orzo Chickpea Salad

This week I had made plans to go on a picnic on the National Mall to check out the renovated reflecting pool (the largest pool cleaning ever...it took two years!), but Mother Nature had other plans and literally rained on my picnic parade. So I decided to stick with the theme and have an indoor picnic with PB&J sandwiches, pasta salad, cheese, and brown butter oatmeal cookies.

I wish I had thought to take a photo of the entire spread, basket and all, but I completely forgot. However, the orzo pasta salad I had made lasted a few days afterward so I managed to snap a picture of that. Very refreshing and light pasta salad-perfect for a lunch or a picnic!

Orzo Chickpea Salad (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1/2 cup (2 oz) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1 (19-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
• 3 TB fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 TB cold water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp bottled minced garlic 

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and rinse with cold water.

Combine pasta, onions, cheese, dill, and chickpeas in a large bowl, tossing gently to combine.

Combine juice and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle over pasta mixture; toss gently to coat.