This is a light and flavorful as a main dish or side dish. It’s a perfect side for any grilled meat or fish.  I make it pretty frequently during the Spring, Summer and Fall.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 to 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 2 cups chopped spinach leaves
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped green onion
• 1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions

1. In a saucepan, bring 2 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and the rice. Turn heat to low, cover, and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff with a fork.
2. In a large bowl, whisk lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, oregano, pepper, pepper flakes, and remaining tsp. salt.
3. Add rice to dressing and toss to combine. Add spinach, toss, and let sit until no longer steaming, about 20 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Serve at room temperature or cold.

This is how it looks when you are done!

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 3:56 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.