Parmesan Orzo with Peas

From melskitchencafe.com

This dish was an easy side dish to execute.  I'd never cooked with orzo before making this recipe.  In fact, I'd never eaten it before, either.  I don't know why it intimidated me so much.  It's very easy to prepare.

This dish had a lovely Parmesan flavor to it.  It was very filling.  Keep that in mind when (like me) you devour your second helping.  Probably should have stopped after one serving!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, minced
¾ teaspoon salt
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 ¼ cups orzo
2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley leaves

     (I omitted)
Ground black pepper

Directions:

Melt the butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and salt.  Cook, stirring often, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Stir in the orzo and cook, stirring often, until most of the grains are golden, about 5 minutes.  

Carefully stir in the broth and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally until all of the liquid has been absorbed and the orzo is tender, 10 to 12 minutes.  Do not cook at too high of heat because the liquid will evaporate instead of cooking the orzo.

Remove from the heat.  Stir in the peas, Parmesan, and parsley and let sit until the peas are warmed through, about 2 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Yields: 4-6 servings