Published: 10 August 2021. Recipe by: Natalie Thomson.
If you’re hosting gluten-free guests, this vibrant and delicious summer recipe is the perfect dish to whip up!
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4-6
You’ll need:
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 stick of celery, peeled and finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- Pinch of saffron
- 250g gluten-free orzo pasta
- 400ml Bouillon vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 150g mixed colour cherry tomatoes, halved
- 250g halloumi, thickly sliced
- 25g parsley, roughly chopped
- 75g pistachios, chopped
What to do:
- Heat a little oil in a large frying pan on a medium heat. Add half the onion, the carrot and the celery and cook until softened. Add the sliced garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes on a low heat.
- Add the saffron, orzo pasta, vegetable stock, dried oregano and some salt and pepper and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 8 minutes or until the orzo is tender and the liquid has completely evaporated.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat a little more olive oil in a small pan and add the rest of the onion. Cook on low until the onion is completely soft. Add a little salt, then turn up the heat and cook until the onion is golden. Watch so it doesn’t catch and burn. Set aside.
- Once the pasta is cooked, put to one side to cool slightly, adding in the halved cherry tomatoes. Stir a few times as the pasta cools to stop it from solidifying.
- Heat a griddle pan and cook the halloumi pieces on high for 1-2 minutes each side.
- Once the halloumi is cooked, stir the chopped parsley through the orzo and top with the halloumi, caramelised onions and chopped pistachios. Serve. Enjoy!
As a Vitality member, you could get up to 25% cashback on Waitrose & Partners Good Health food when you get active. If you have a second qualifying health insurance or life insurance plan, you could get up to 40% cash- back. A monthly spend cap applies. Excludes beverages. Log in to Member Zone for the details.