Occasionally, I let the pantry and the fridge run very low. Too low.
I often put together a creative, delicious dish under extreme circumstances, as was the case this week.
And, it forces me to use up food that would otherwise go bad.
This week, I stared at a zucchini, almost past its prime. The pantry had a can of San Marzano tomatoes and some orzo.
And since I never let my garlic and onion stores run totally dry, I felt as if I could whip something up.
That is how Zucchini and Tomato Orzo was born.
I sliced both the onion and zucchini in thin half moons. I drizzled some olive oil in the saute pan and heated it on medium. I threw in both the onion and zucchini.
I diced a clove of garlic and threw that in as well. When all were soft, I squished the tomatoes in my hands and added them and all of their liquid from the can.
I rummaged through my dried spices and added some oregano and basil as well as a shake of salt and plenty of black pepper.
I boiled off some orzo until al dente and added it to the zucchini and tomato mixture.
I finished it off with some fresh flat leaf parsley from my herb garden and some grated Parmesan.
It was surprisingly delicious and healthy. A true Italian victory!