We all have those days on our meal plan where we need something tasty that doesn’t take all night to cook and with a little help from my friend, the rice shaped pasta, Orzo, I created this easy and tasty one pot meal. Quick and easy two-pot vegan orzo. The only reason it is two-pot is that you cook the orzo at the same time as the veg. Still, not bad though as it is all on the hob.
You might have noticed that I haven’t been around or a while and that is because I was taking a break. I have been concentrating on my other blog The Urban Wanderer to build up the profile over there. While I have still been meal planning and creating recipes, I just haven’t been posting them. Sometimes you’ve just got to eat and not take pictures, right? And on the topic of pictures, please excuse the ones of the quick and easy two-pot vegan orzo recipe as I snapped them just now before chowing down on the left overs for lunch. I’m sure you understand!
You know how I said two-pot? Well, it is two pot and a food processor really (or you can skip that bit by buying sun-dried tomato pesto, but that will de-veganise it)
Ingredients:
1 large Aubergine, diced
1 large red onion, diced
1 Red pepper, sliced into inch lengths
1 Green pepper, sliced into inch lengths
4 cloves of garlic, finely diced or pressed
100 g pine nuts
25 g fresh basil
1 tin of artichoke hearts in water, quarter the hearts
200 g sun dried tomatoes in oil
100 g bag of rocket
Method:
In a large pan or stockpot, place the pine nuts and turn the heat to medium
Watch the pine nuts closely as you brown them in the pan (they can burn in the blink of an eye!)
Once lightly browned, place into your food processor along with the sun dried tomatoes, about 2 table spoons of the oil, the basil (including the stalks) and the cloves of garlic
Blitz the mix until you create a thick pesto
Boil the kettle and add it to a medium sauce pan
Bring the water to the boil and add the orzo, giving it a quick stir so the grains don’t stick to the bottom
Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 9 minutes until al dente (around 2 minutes shorter than the packet instructions)
Once the orzo is cooked, drain any excess water, cover and leave until you’re ready to add to the vegetable mixture
Add about another two table spoons of the sun dried tomato oil to the large pan and add aubergines and cook, over a medium heat and stirring, for about 10 minutes, then add the other vegetables for another 7 minutes until softened and cooked through
Add the quartered artichoke hearts to the vegetables
Finally add the pesto and cooked orzo to the pan and stir to mix well and coat everything in the delicious pesto
Warm through thoroughly until piping hot then dump in the bag of rocket and stir through just before serving
Notes:
If you don’t want to bother with the food processor you can buy ready-made sun dried tomato pesto which works well too. Bear in mind that it is likely to contain parmesan though, so won’t be vegan any more. (just omit the garlic, pine nuts, basil and sun dried tomatoes from your shopping list of prep)
Although I love being in my kitchen rustling up something delicious, I do occasionally like something that is simple to do. After clocking up over 20 miles of walking around the city and canals yesterday I was ready for nice relaxed evening ready for the week ahead. So the Quick and Easy Two-Pot Vegan Orzo was perfectly placed for our Sunday meal.
If you’re a fan or Orzo, you might like my autumn recipe that I posted yonks ago. Just look at that OLD picture! *cringe*
Orzo with Autumn vegetables
I don’t know about you, but I not only love autumn for walking, but I also love the flavours too. A time for warming colours and delicious stews. Mmmm, and getting the slow cooker out too. Which reminds me I need to get roasting my veg to chuck in the slow cooker for my alternative version of this Roasted Tomato, Pepper and Chilli Balsamic Soup for tonight.
- 1 large Aubergine, diced
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 1 Red pepper, sliced into inch lengths
- 1 Green pepper, sliced into inch lengths
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely diced or pressed
- 100 g pine nuts
- 25 g fresh basil
- 1 tin of artichoke hearts in water, quarter the hearts
- 200 g sun dried tomatoes in oil
- 100 g bag of rocket
- In a large pan or stockpot, place the pine nuts and turn the heat to medium
- Watch the pine nuts closely as you brown them in the pan (they can burn in the blink of an eye!)
- Once lightly browned, place into your food processor along with the sun dried tomatoes, about 2 table spoons of the oil, the basil (including the stalks) and the cloves of garlic
- Blitz the mix until you create a thick pesto
- Boil the kettle and add it to a medium sauce pan
- Bring the water to the boil and add the orzo, giving it a quick stir so the grains don’t stick to the bottom
- Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 9 minutes until al dente (around 2 minutes shorter than the packet instructions)
- Once the orzo is cooked, drain any excess water, cover and leave until you’re ready to add to the vegetable mixture
- Add about another two table spoons of the sun dried tomato oil to the large pan and add aubergines and cook, over a medium heat and stirring, for about 10 minutes, then add the the other vegetables for another 7 minutes until softened and cooked through
- Add the quartered artichoke hearts to the vegetables
- Finally add the pesto and cooked orzo to the pan and stir to mix well and coat everything in the delicious pesto
- Warm through thoroughly until piping hot then dump in the bag of rocket and stir through just before serving
- Notes:
- If you don’t want to bother with the food processor you can buy ready made sun dried tomato pesto which works well too. Bear in mind that it is likely to contain parmesan though, so won’t be vegan any more. (just omit the garlic, pine nuts, basil and sun dried tomatoes from your shopping list of prep)