A dear friend of ours who is an amazing dad to twins (and a really good cook to boot) turned me on to the idea of this recipe. He's always looking for new and interesting recipes to feed his kids and encourages them to be balanced eaters through the variety of food he exposes them to. He uses a lot of orzo, a rice-shaped pasta, which I've rediscovered my love for.
As much as I love to cook, being in the kitchen for more then 30 minutes isn't always desirable or a possibility, so it's essential for me to come up with quick and easy recipes that I can count on to satisfy my family. For this dish, I just toss the veggies in my food processor and pulse them into tiny pieces (which cuts down on the prep time having to chop everything) and then cook all the ingredients until the orzo and veggie mixture is soft and has a rich cheesy flavor.
My friend's kids love his version of this dish and I was so happy to see Kenya and Chloe felt the same way about mine.
Carrot, Broccoli & Cheese Orzo (serves 4)
- Prep Time:1 minutes, (PT1M)
- Cook Time: 14 minutes, (PT14M)
- Total Time: 15 minutes, (PT15M)
Ingredients
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1 small shallot
- 1 cup baby carrots
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
- 1 cup white or whole wheat orzo
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated
Preparation
- 1. Place shallot and garlic in food processor and pulse to chop.
- 2. Add baby carrots and broccoli florets to the food processor and pulse, scraping down the sides half way until finely chopped.
- 3. In a large stock pot, heat 2 tbsp of butter or olive oil and sauté the chopped vegetables, raw orzo and salt for 4 minutes stirring continuously.
- 4. Add the salt, water and broth to the pot and cook over medium heat for 10
- minutes uncovered, or until the liquid starts to evaporate and the mixture thickens.
- 5. Add the Parmesan cheese and stir to combine.
- 6. Serve.
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