Orzo pasta salad

During the summer I like to have some vegetables roasted at the beginning of the week to make my salads more chunky as well as healthy.  I don't always have protein for lunch so some roasted squash or red pepper or eggplant goes a long way for me.  Here is a summer dish I just love.  You could use pearl cous cous or orzo or quinoa, whatever you fancy.  The girls love that the orzo is small and cooking it in chicken stock gives it, it's own flavor.  You can substitute any vegetable or salad ingredient you like but here is a good balance of colors and textures to make a yummy lunch or light dinner.   Obviously if you don't have vegetables roasted already, then you would need to get the oven on and get those done first.  I have them in containers in the fridge so I just warm them through under the broiler or just mix them in with the hot pasta and thats enough for me.   I love to add chili flakes on mine as well for an extra kick.  

Ingredients:
orzo pasta
chicken stock

2/3 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 cup broccoli florets, small 

2 tblspn basil, freshly chopped

1 clove garlic
knob butter
sea salt

cracked pepper
2/3 cup diced mushrooms
1/3 cup shaved parmesan cheese

grilled eggplant, diced

or butternut squash, roasted
optional: Grilled chicken breast slices

Method:

• Cook pasta in boiling water with chicken stock
• Soak florets of boccoli in boiling water for 5-8mins (while the pasta is cooking)
• Dice mushrooms, heat a shallow skillet pan and cook mushrooms in a knob of butter. Add garlic, salt and pepper and cook until mushrooms release water and brown up.
• Dice other ingredients, and place in a large bowl. Season with sea salt and cracked pepper, a drop of olive oil, chili flakes (optional) and add cooked garlic mushrooms.  Toss well.
• When the pasta is cooked, drain well - retaining 1/3 cup of pasta water in a separate bowl.
• Mix through a 1/3 cup of parmesan cheese while hot and then add to mixed vegetables.