cook: orzo salad

I had lots of odds and ends in the fridge: a bit of feta, lemon feta olive salad, green olives, kalamata olives, roasted red bell pepper, marinated artichokes, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, a package of Moroccan tofu. Plus an almost empty box of orzo pasta. And because I’d been craving and finally got around to making it--hummus. Nothing beats a creamy hummus sprinkled with dukkah, hot paprika, a spoonful of shatta or Middle Eastern pepper sauce, and a generous drizzle of fruity olive oil. All of the bits and pieces went into an orzo salad, and all these viands from the fridge made for a very fine dinner. My winter mezze is starchier than the mezzes I assemble in summer. But thank goodness for plant proteins like tofu to add more complexity to the carbs.      

Tofu may be quite bland, but easily takes on the flavors of whatever you cook it with. I imagine my Moroccan tofu was steeped in lots of paprika, turmeric, cinnamon, cumin, ginger, cardamom, which I browned in a skillet. There was a delightful contrast between soft and chewy and crispy. I’m such a fan of this particular brand of tofu that I asked my husband to look for it (and any kind would've made me happy)on the shelves at the warehouse we shop.                  

Alas no hodo to be had on that trip, and so I’ll have to find it at the supermarket where it costs a bit more. 

However, I do love that these tofu products expand my ethnic meal rotations. For dessert, I usually eat an orange or a tangerine, but the winter holidays means that Trader Joe’s is carrying almond Kringle from Racine, Wisconsin. And so that baked good is alongside my fruit bowl with the rest in the freezer for desserts the next couple weeks until I break open into another seasonal pastry, panettone.                      

These pastries are not what I would’ve relished a couple decades ago. As a staid middle aged woman, I'm usually happy with some nuts and cheese and fruit to nibble after dinner.