Pseudo-Greek salad with Orzo

We had an end-of-the summer street party today at my neighbours. It was a BBQ and I opted to bring a side dish- psuedo Greek salad with orzo. I called it pseudo - Greek because although it has most of the elements of a Greek salad it lacks some key ingredients such as Kalamata olives, oregano and green peppers, and has orzo. Orzo is a rice shape pasta that takes very little time to cook and lends a nice texture to a salad.

There are many similar recipes of pasta salads, but this is my favourite combination. Of course you could add olives and green peppers as well. I don't have the exact measurements and go only by taste and the quantity that I'm making. The dressing contains:

1-2 cloves of garlic, finely minced

Extra virgin olive oil

Fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon or less depending on quantity)

Salt and pepper to taste. I usually only add salt to the final dish since it has feta cheese which will contribute to the saltiness of the dish as well.

For the pasta, I usually cook 1 cup of orzo in well salted, boiling water. Cook until al-dente, drain and toss in some olive oil to prevent clumping.

My favourite vegetable combo for this is simply English cucumbers, tomatoes (I use grape or cherry tomoatoes for special ocassions - cut in half), red onions and freshly chopped parsley. Crumble some feta cheese on top and mix it all up. Add salt to taste. Leftovers make great lunches.