Creamy Courgette and Mushroom Autumn Orzo

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Jasmine

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Welcome to But First, Food! For those who have followed me here from my lifestyle page and / or my beauty page: this is something Ive been wanting to do for a long time, and since sharing more recipes and food content on my lifestyle page, it seemed the time. If you’ve somehow stumbled across this: thank you! And whilst I update this site, please do check out my food content on @jasmine_butfirstfood. To kick things off I’m sharing a season veg focused quick weeknight meal that I’m loving at the moment….

INGREDIENTS

Vegetables & pasta:

Courgette

Swiss / Rainbow Chard

Mushrooms (I used Chestnut)

Sage

Artichokes

Orzo

Aromatics and flavour:

Shallot

Garlic

Vegetable stock

Lemon

Paprika

Oregano

Toppings etc.:

Italian hard cheese (vegetarian or – if you don’t mind rennet – Parmesan or Pecorino)

Double cream

TIPS

This recipe comes together in under 30 minutes, and it’s a one-pot, making it perfect for weeknights when you want something tasty, simple and quick with minimal washing up.

The orzo will take up to 20 minutes to cook so your vegetables don’t need too long in the pan on their own, just enough time to soften them up. Make sure you keep an eye on your orzo and stir it regularly so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of your pan and releases starches; with this risotto method of cooking you’re only using *just* enough water to cook it through, adding only when you need to.

Make sure you slice the vegetables fairly finely to allow them to cook through properly. This recipe reheats and freezes nicely too, and this quantity serves 2 + a smaller 3rd portion, so you’ll get a packed lunch out of the recipe too!

Creamy Courgette and Mushroom Autumn Orzo

  • Servings: 2-3
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

A weeknight one pot orzo with seasonal veg

No special equipment needed, no advance prep required

Ingredients

  • 1 courgette (sliced then cut into quarters)
  • 2 leaves of Swiss / rainbow chard (roughly chopped)
  • 100g chestnut mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 sprig of sage (chopped) (and an optional extra sprig for garnish)
  • 5 jarred artichokes (chopped into chunks)
  • 1 shallot (sliced)
  • 3 cloves of garlic (crushed)
  • 350ml of vegetable stock
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 Llemon (juice)
  • 250g of Orzo pasta
  • 60g of Italian hard cheese (finely grated)
  • 2 tbsp of double cream
  • 1 tsp of Paprika
  • 1 tsp of Oregano

Directions

  1. Prep all of your ingredients as above and toast the sage in olive oil for a couple of mins
  2. Over a medium heat, warm the olive oil in a wide based lidded pan
  3. Add the shallots and garlic, cook for a few minutes until fragrant
  4. Season with the salt, pepper, paprika and oregano and stir together
  5. Add in the mushrooms and courgette, stir, cover and cook for a further 5-7 minutes
  6. Add the lemon juice and the orzo, stir everything together
  7. Gradually add in the vegetable stock in 50-75ml amounts and increase the heat a little – keep stirring the mixture and add more stock as the previous batch is absorbed (this should take up to 15 minutes) and cover the pan in between
  8. Once the orzo is cooked, add the artichokes, sage and swiss chard, stir together and cook for a further few minutes
  9. Add the double cream and most of the cheese (save some for garnish)
  10. Once the cheese has melted, serve with the extra to top it off (optional: add a few leaves of sage for decoration only)

Let me know if you try this recipe!

Check out the video here:

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