With the final days of the school year upon us at my house, the family calendar is finally starting to clear a little bit. For months now, meals have mostly been eaten on the go or standing over the sink, way too late at night after long practices, games or activities. I feel like I have a little recalibrating to do as far as my approach to cooking dinner.
What used to be the epicenter of our family life, got pushed to the sidelines for a bit. Which is not a bad thing necessarily; there’s a season for everything, but I’m excited for a bit more time at home and with that definitely more cooking. I saw a lovely photo of an orzo salad cross my social media feed sometime this spring and I quickly saved the photo, tucking it away as inspiration for when I had a little more time.
I’m glad I did, because when I went to water my garden this weekend, the arugula that I half-heartedly planted in late March decided this was the week for harvest. The greens are tender, peppery, perfectly bright green and probably the most flavorful I’ve eaten all year. I now need at least a dozen recipes that include arugula over the next couple weeks so not a leaf goes to waste.
But back to the inspiration photo. The orzo salad, from what I could tell, was full of greens and herbs, lemon and a little cheese. Lucky for me, those ingredients are staples around my house.
I set to work making my own version and the result might just be one of my new favorite recipes. There’s something so satisfyin.
