Side: Chilled Pasta Salad with Basil Cucumber Ribbons

Difficulty: Easy

Prep/Cook Time: 20 min

Chill Time: 30 min

Serves (4)

This dish stays true to the simplicity of traditional pasta salad, yet offers a bolder appeal and elegance. With vibrant flavors and distinct textures, each ingredient can be tasted for its full potential. Don't let the chill time steer you away. Prepare the meal up to 24 hrs ahead of time, and when ready to serve, top with shaved cucumber ribbons for some added pizazz.

Ingredients: 8 oz spaghetti, 1 cucumber, 2 small onions, 1 1/3 cup sweet peas, 2 medium tomatoes, 1 cup sliced olives, basil, salt, pepper, romano cheese for topping, and your favorite Italian dressing

Bring water to boil and cook spaghetti until al dente. Once cooked, drain spaghetti and spread out on plate for faster cooling. Place plate in refrigerator.

Slice onions. Place in lightly oiled pan with peas over medium heat. Heat onions and peas until onions begin to soften and peas are soft (about 10 min). Sprinkle with salt and pepper. We want the onions to keep most of their brightness and crunch--so be careful to not overcook them. Remove peas and onions from pan and spread out on plate. Place plate in the refrigerator.

Slice tomatoes into chunks. Slice olives. Place tomatoes and olives in refrigerator.

Peel cucumber. Slice cucumber in half. Using a potato peeler, peel cucumber into strips until you reach the seeds. Sprinkle cucumber peels with basil. Refrigerate.

After 30 min, remove all ingredients from refrigerator and combine in large bowl. Mix with your favorite Italian dressing. Plate spaghetti. Roll cucumber peels to make tubes (it's fine if some tubes unroll). Arrange on top of spaghetti. Top with grated romano cheese.

Entrée: Marinated Italian Chicken over Orzo and Corn with Sautéed Tomatoes, Olives, and Feta

Difficulty: Medium

Prep Time: 10 min

Marinade Time: 30 min

Cook Time 15-20 min

Serves (2)

Many orzo chicken dishes have great flavors, but are over spiced and over salted. This dish builds off the delicacy of orzo, and gives each ingredient room to breathe. With nothing heavy, and nothing too light, there's a great balance between the crunch of corn, the sweet tomatoes and the salty feta.

Ingredients: 1 large skinless chicken breast, 2/3 cup orzo, 1 ear of corn, 1 medium tomato, 1/2 cup sliced olives, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1-2 tsp Italian seasonings, salt, pepper, Italian dressing, feta cheese

Place chicken breast in quart sized ziploc bag. Pour your favorite Italian dressing over chicken--about 3/4 cup (my family has always used Good Seasons). Remove air from bag, zip tightly, and marinate for 30 min.

Bring water to boil in 2 qt. pot for orzo and corn. Shuck ear of corn. Holding corn vertically, carefully slice downward to remove kernels. Place corn kernels and orzo in boiling water and cook until orzo is al dente (8-10 min). The corn will cook at the same rate as the pasta.

While orzo is cooking, remove chicken from bag and slice into even sized strips. Cook chicken strips in oiled pan over medium heat--about 3 min each side. Remove from pan. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add a little more olive oil. Dice tomato into cubes and saute in the same pan with olive oil until tomatoes begin to break down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Drain orzo and corn. Mix orzo and corn into pan with tomatoes. Mix in onion powder, Italian Seasonings, and sliced olives. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Plate orzo mixture with chicken strips and crumbled feta cheese.