Orzo Pesto Salad

Ugly Duckling Bakery

Orzo Pesto Salad

Ugly Duckling Bakery

This orzo pesto salad is the perfect summer salad. It's packed with ripe tomatoes and fresh mozzarella and topped with toasted pine nuts.

Ugly Duckling Bakery

Ingredients

orzo pesto fresh mozzarella cherry or grape tomatoes pitted Kalamata olives toasted pine nuts salt  black pepper

Orzo Pesto Salad

Orzo Pesto Salad

Orzo means “barley” in Italian. It's a small wheat pasta shaped like grains of barley or rice.  If you can't find orzo,  any small shape will work.

Tips and Tricks

Orzo Pesto Salad

You can use store-bought pesto in this orzo pesto pasta salad recipe or make your own. Swipe up to see my recipe for pesto alla Genovese.

Tips and Tricks

Orzo Pesto Salad

Pasta tastes best if you finish cooking pasta in sauce. You don't want to heat basil pesto, but the orzo should still be warm to take up that herbalicious flavor!

Tips and Tricks

Check out other summer salad recipes

Make a peach and burrata Caprese salad with summer's best tomatoes and peaches, creamy burrata, and a bit of fresh basil.

Check out other summer salad recipes

Or combine sourdough croutons and fresh melon into a watermelon panzanella. It’s another perfect side to bring to a potluck or take on a summer picnic.

Check out other summer salad recipes

Or, when it gets hot and you don't want to cook, add quickly seared tuna to a rainbow poke bowl to make this an all-in-one dinner in a bowl.