Spinach Feta Orzo Salad

This Orzo Pasta Salad with spinach and feta cheese with vibrant balsamic dressing is quick to assemble and party of flavors in the mouth. What I love the most is that; 1) it can be served chilled or at room temperature, 2) it is creamy without any mayo or creams - simply the Balsamic dressing and feta cheese coat pasta so well that it becomes a cohesive salad with flavor in every forkful. 

You can also make this vegan salad. To make vegan salad and keep it creamy, skip the feta cheese and replace it with 2 tablespoons of good quality peanut butter powder (no added sugar).

Let's get cooking!

Spinach and Orzo Salad

Spinach is a delicious salad green even though it is overlooked among other popular salad greens such as kale, arugula, romaine lettuce or spring lettuce. We make sure to include 1-2 two spinach salad in the weekly menu to keep greens at rotation. If you like kale or arugula more than spinach, you can toss in a handful of spinach with other greens.

I recommend try this salad with spinach as spinach and orzo are classic combination and compliment in flavors.

Salad Dressing

The dressing for this salad works double duty. 1) as salad dressing; 2) as marinade.

I whisk the dressing while pasta is cooking. Then, mix 2-3 tablespoons of dressing into the freshly cooked and drained pasta. This prevents pasta from drying out or sticking together. Also enhances the flavor of orzo pasta.

You can also mix in half of the feta cheese while mixing hot pasta with dressing. This will make orzo salad even more delicious. 

Toasted Almonds for Salad:

The toasted almonds give subtle nutty crunch to this salad. You can also substitute almonds with toasted pine nuts, toasted walnuts or pecans.

To toast almonds at home:

Heat a dry skillet. Add sliced almonds and heat until slightly toasted and fragrant. Keep an eye, don't let almonds burn. Take out of heat and transfer to a paper towel to cool completely. 

You can also skip toasting almonds and use pre-seasoned almonds, slightly crushed.

Making Spinach Orzo Salad

Once dressing, pasta and toasted almonds are ready. Assembling salad is very easy.

In a large salad bowl or platter, add cooked pasta, top it with spinach, whites of green onions, sliced radish (if using), olives, crumbled feta cheese. Garnish with toasted almonds and greens of green onions. Gently fold in dressing before eating.

Make Ahead:

When making ahead for a potluck or weekly meal plan:

For best flavor, add remaining dressing just before serving and gently toss it. I recommend packing spinach separately and folding in when tossing salad. This will ensure that spinach is fresh and crunchy when salad is served.

For potlucks, make some extra dressing. Reserve extra dressing in a separate container. Mix into the salad just before serving.

This Spinach Pasta Salad is our family's favorite lunch salad! I love the fact that it's filling which means no afternoon cravings. It's vegetarian which works for our meat-free days. You can add protein of your choice such as baked tofu (vegetarian) or cooked chicken/shrimp. In my book, this is a perfect win-win for pasta and salad lovers!

I hope you get chance to try it soon! Happy cooking.