Herbed Rubbed Chicken with Creamy Orzo

I am happy to say that I have been cooking up a storm lately! It feels good to finally be back in the kitchen. Over the weekend, I was making Christmas cookies and goodies to send to our family members, stay tuned for posts about those, and was looking for a quick, easy dinner. This one is it!! It has a creamy tomato sauce and wonderful broccoli. The chicken has a spice rub that is packed full of flavor and really offsets the creamy pasta. I know I have said in the past that Michael won't eat cooked broccoli, but he really thought this was good.

Another food he doesn't like, I know there are many, is orzo. He said it is just weird. It looks like rice, but its a pasta. He didn't want any of that, so I changed the pasta out to an angel hair and it worked perfectly. This is a fast and flavorful dinner. Throw some rolls on the side and you are set! Enjoy.

Herbed Rubbed Chicken with Creamy Orzo
Printer friendly recipe
Source: Annie's Eats

Ingredients:

8 oz. orzo pasta, uncooked
2 chicken breasts, butterflied into halves (4 pieces total)
Salt and pepper
2 tsp. Herbes de Provence
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with juices
2 cups broccoli florets
½ cup heavy cream
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Bring a saucepan of salted water to boil. Add the orzo and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, about 10 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving ½ cup of the pasta water.

Season both sides of the chicken breast halves with salt and pepper. Sprinkle evenly with the Herbes de Provence. Heat the olive oil in a 12- or 14-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breast halves to the pan and cook about 3 minutes per side, until golden brown.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the shallot to the pan and sauté 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté an additional minute, until fragrant. Add the diced tomatoes with juices and the broccoli florets to the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove any browned bits. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer over medium-low. Cover and let cook until the broccoli florets are crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cooked orzo, heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. Mix until well blended and the cheese has melted. If necessary, add some of the reserved pasta water to smooth out the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.