Orzo a La Melanie
About This Recipe
“A colorful pasta dish, which can be served as a side dish, as a lunch and is particularly good for a buffet as it does not mind sitting around and tastes just as good at room temperature. I like this recipe because everyone in my house likes it (a rare occurrence) and because any vegetable can be substituted as long as it is cut up small. For vegetarians substitute vegetable stock.”
Ingredients
Directions
Reviews
“This recipe is a great find! I had an orzo primavera recipe that was similar – but the tomato sauce, cream and cheese – make this almost like grown-up macaroni and cheese.It is easy to prepare and has a great look! It is so creamy and reheats beautifully.I am a personal chef and have had such success using Recipezaar recipes without testing and I have to thank great recipe submitters like Melanie – now this is one of my favorites – for me AND my clients!! Thank you!!”
“Good base. I made the recipe exactly as stated. It takes time for the flavors to marry, so let it sit somewhere for at least 15 minutes. I would have liked a bit more flavor. I’ll try throwing in crushed red pepper and maybe some oregano next time, but it was definitely something that will be easy to build on.”
“Great recipe!! In my hometown, there is a little out-of-the way Italian restaurant the serves a dish that is real similar to yours. My husband and I loved your version and this is what we took for lunch this week. This is excellent as is but I may experiment with a few fresh herbs just for fun. Thanks for sharing your recipe, Melanie.”
“This wasDELICIOUS!!! I made this as written but agreed with others that it needed some additional flavor. It’s up to you to add whatever you like. I added some oregano and a dash of red pepper & a few other things we personally like,It is a bit time consuming as you need to chop things , etc. so leave time to prepare. It is extremely easy to put together.I served it with Parmesan Chicken Tenderloins but you can eat as is for a lighter meal. It would go well with anything.”
“Always looking for good orzo recipes.Liked this one with all the different vegys.Didn’t have squash but it still worked ok.Substituted yogurt for the cream.Found it abit too saucy but that might be due to the lack of squash.Next time I’ll cut the sauce by a couple tsps.”
“This was pretty easy and tasty. I added Italian ground turkey and used half ans half instead of cream. Next time, I think I will top with fresh basil. Serves and army!”
“I found this quite time-consuming, and I did need to add herbs and spices to it like ‘Cookin’inCanada’ did. But the end product was tasty; I halved the recipe, skipped the tomato, and used milk instead of cream.”
“Good base recipe but I added a lot of my own spices as I knew it wouldn’t be enough flavor us.Easy to make and full of veggies.My husband loved it after I added the spices (thyme, basil and lots of crushed chilis).I will make it again. Thanks Melanie!”
“This is so good!We all loved it, even my 3 teens.I’ve made this many times and everyone has really loved it.We get tired of potatoes and rice so the orzo was a nice change.Thanks!”
“I cooked this last night for my fiance.I made a few adjustments for the ingredients I could not find in Greece but it turned out wonderful!A double recipe cooks up just as well as the original.Thanks for a great meal!”
“I can’t give this recipe star ratings because I didn’t make it “as written” but what a great “base” recipe!I knew that the recipe would not be seasoned enough for us so I added some crushed red pepper.I also increased the cream.I couldn’t find orzo (not unusual in my little Mexican town) so used tiny elbow macaroni.I took this to a BBQ last night and got a bunch of compliments. (Even from a local professional chef!)Good stuff, Melanie!”
“Very versatile.I made it with the veggies that needed to be used in the fridge.Very good and pretty results.I will certainly make this again.In mine went carrot, zucchini, eggplant, red pepper, onion and garlic.Just about anything would be possible.I increased the cream as it seemed to need more moisture.Thanks.”
“made this with a few variations and LOVE IT!!!After everything had been cooked and sauteed we threw it all in a crock pot on low and went out for a while.I was ready and waiting when we got home and everyone thought it was great!I would also consider adding chicken breat to be simmered in with the tomato sauce…”
“I had never eated squash till I tried this recipe, I now love it! I have made this more than a few times now and my husband and I just love it.It makes fantastic leftovers for lunch the next day as well.Thank you so much Melanie, what a great dish!”
“This is a family pleaser.I have made it twice in two weeks.Some of like it hot, some like it cold.I think next time I will add some spicy sausages to it.Thanks for the recipe!”
“Left out the zuchini and squash so that the kids would eat it.Was gobbled up quickly.Will be amking this a lot, esp at the campsite as a little pkg of orzo is easy to pack and will go a long way in this recipe!”
“very good, made it for a pot luck dinner and everyone loved it. PLanning on making it tonight, but I am adding some chicken to it as well.Family loved it”
“Yummy! I liked the fact that it was not overly tomatoey, just very creamy and tasty.I followed the recipe exactly, except that I added a little extra garlic toward the end of the cooking.I think I will make this for my next potluck dinner.Thanks for a great recipe.It’s a winner!”
“This was very tasty!Lots of vegetables and it was very filling. Would give it a try.I did not have any onions and it stil was great so it might be even yummier!!”