Recipe: Athenian Orzo Bake

Post by Olivia Martino, Registered Dietitian and Owner, Nourish Northwest

You may have noticed that almost all of the recipes I post are vegan and gluten free.  While I don’t categorize my diet to be strictly under either of those labels, that tends to be how I eat most of the time and it is how I cook for my personal chef clients. I don’t think either gluten or animal products are inherently bad, i just tend towards eating mostly plants for their health benefits as well as my food preferences.  So just to shake things up a bit, here is a recipe that includes both gluten, meat and dairy! I love the flavors in this recipe they are a little different than traditional pasta dishes.  Enjoy!

Athenian Orzo Bake

    

Ingredients

• 1½ teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, divided
• 1 tablespoon drained capers
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Pinch of crushed red pepper
• 1 pound poached chicken* or shredded rotisserie chicken
• 1 cup orzo
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese

 

Directions

• Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch (or other 3-quart) baking dish with cooking spray. Put a large pot of lightly salted water on to boil.
• Heat oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add wine and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, 1½ tablespoons parsley, capers, oregano, basil, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper and chicken; cook for 5 minutes.
• Cook orzo in the boiling water until tender but still firm, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Toss with the tomato-chicken sauce. Sprinkle with feta and the remaining 1½ tablespoons parsley.
• Bake, uncovered, until the feta is bubbly, about 10 minutes.

 

 

 

*How To Poach Chicken Breasts: If you don’t have leftover chicken but you want to make a recipe that calls for cooked chicken, the easiest way to cook it is to poach it. Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a medium skillet or saucepan. Add lightly salted water (or chicken broth) to cover and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 15 minutes. (1 pound raw chicken = about 2 1/2 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken)