Chicken, Lemon, and Dill with Orzo

This is another dish I tried during our trip to Oklahoma this summer. I've been waiting for it to be cool enough to make for dinner, and since it's currently 71 I'd say we've hit the right time. The recipe is originally from PBS Everyday Food.

This is quick to toss together (although it needs 40 minutes to cook) and has a nice, lemony flavor. If your kids refuse to eat anything "combined," as mine currently do, then just make the chicken a bit larger and serve it as "chicken and rice." They'll never know. :)

The recipe calls for chicken tenderloins, but I had some boneless, skinless thighs I needed to use instead.

Ingredients:

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth. I used the broth I made from trash and froze in 1 cup portions.

1 tablespoon unsalted butter (I left out 1/4 tsp salt and used salted butter)

1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch pieces (used chicken thighs, left them whole)

1 pound orzo

2 cups crumbled feta (4 ounces)

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest, plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 cup grated Parmesan

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a saucepan, bring broth, 3/4 cup water, butter, salt, and pepper to a boil. Spray 3 quart baking dish with cooking spray.
   
2. While the liquid is coming to a boil, combine chicken, orzo, feta, dill, lemon zest and juice in the baking dish. Pour boiling broth mixture over orzo and stir once to incorporate.
3. Bake until orzo is tender and cooking liquid is creamy, about 40 minutes. Sprinkle Parmesan on top and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

That's it--super easy, tasty, walk-away while it cooks convenience, and usually eaten by picky little geeks.