Easy Creamy Chicken Orzo

Tonight, I planned on making chicken & orzo tossed with lemon juice, olive oil, and parmesan cheese.  This is always a simple, easy, go-to, especially in the summer (so good with shrimp, too!).  Considering the fact that it is abnormally cold outside, Rory and I both wanted to make this dish more of a winter comfort food.  I knew I wanted to add a can of fire roasted tomatoes because they add really good flavor to any Italian dish!  Rory wanted it as creamy as possible so he suggested throwing in some cream cheese (I was skeptical).  To our surprise, we ended up with a new winter comfort food that was super easy to make.

Ingredients:
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
1/2 box of orzo
2-3 chicken breast
1/3 block of reduced fat cream cheese
white balsamic vinegar (optional)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt, pepper, italian seasoning
garlic (minced or powder)

Making a fast, easy meal is essential on most weeknights.  The biggest trick is time management when you're dealing with different food items in various pots/pans.  Before I begin prepping the food, I put water in the pot and start boiling it for the pasta.  It always takes forever to bring to a boil!

1. Cube chicken into small, bite size pieces.  In a bowl, combine the chicken with olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, about one tablespoon of italian seasoning, garlic, and a few dashes of salt & pepper. I have found, thanks to my mom, that the vinegar (although stinky) helps add moisture to the chicken! Mix everything together and then throw it onto a pan-medium high heat.

2. While chicken cooks, add the orzo to the boiling water and cook boil for 9-11 minutes.

3.  Since the chicken is in small pieces, it should cook rather quickly.  Sometimes, I find myself using a spoon or spatula to slice the chicken into tinier bites as it cooks to speed up the process.  After the chicken is cooked, add the can of fire roasted tomatoes to the pan and mix with the chicken.  Then scoop in the cream cheese and stir until blended.  I also added red pepper flakes because we love spice.

4. Mix the orzo in with the chicken mixture. I like to pretend I'm on a cooking show so I sometimes add a splash of the reserved cooking water.  Stir & serve!  Don't forget to add parmesan cheese or mozzarella to the bowl.

Why Hello!

So, I've neglected my blogging recently.  Honestly, our DVR has filled up so every night after dinner, dishes, etc., it is so relaxing to just plop on the warm, cuddly, couch and catch up on shows with Rory. Dang winter! I guess laziness is a good thing, in doses.

Life has been pretty mundane in the Brannan household but I know it is the quiet before the storm of the holiday season! Here are my attempts to fill you in on the past month...

On the Sunday before Thanksgiving, I had a mini-Thanksgiving with my family before Rory and I left town to visit his folks.  We got together at our house and watched the Ravens game while having a Thanksgiving-ish meal.  We had turkey, cranberry, and brie paninis with cornbread stuffing and green beans wrapped in bacon.  I think this will have to become a new tradition :-)

During the week of Thanksgiving, Deaglan and I had a great time visiting old friends from Fairhill on our way down to Williamsburg. Only the really cool people wore jeans, boots, and blue and white shirts.  Oh, and I learned that it is impossible to have a Starbucks date with the little man! He was really fascinated on figuring out how the coffee was made. Katie, next time I think a long walk will be SO much easier :-)

Thankfully, we dodged traffic on 95 and made it to Williamsburg safely.  We had a great time visiting with siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents from out of town. I didn't take many pictures but most of our days were filled with food, sweets, lounging around, trying to play outside, more sweets, more food.

Deaglan enjoyed reading books with whomever (or whoever…? SO bad at that) was on the couch. Grandpa was lucky enough to read about a child's first 100 words.

 Cousin Stoy and Deaglan didn't mind helping themselves to some sweet, sticky buns!

Deaglan was a helper in the kitchen with Grandma and also loved playing in her spice cabinet.

 We rushed over to downtown Williamsburg one day to feed some duckies but were saddened to find that the ducks were smart and were hiding from the cold.  We tried to take the opportunity though to take a family photo.  Major fail so here are two snapshots of our best attempts….

If only Rory and I were focusing.

Deaglan sneezing in the sun.

And in all the other photos there was always one of us not looking at the camera.

On our way home from Thanksgiving, we stopped off and visited my great-uncle Percy.  We are glad we could take advantage of being nearby because he ended up passing away a few days later.  At the age of 90, he still enjoyed doing crafts (he made Deaglan really cute stacking blocks) but he still tried his best to be active in his church.  He was a sweet, kind-hearted man who will be missed!!

Uncle Percy & Deaglan August 2013

In happy news, Deaglan is still walking around like a little stud.  When he is tired, he gets a bit sloppy and bumps into things which we find quite funny.  He makes more of a mess than ever but as long as he is happy and having fun, I typically don't mind!

He loves exploring cabinets.

D helps me cook by either being a clingy Koala orrrr occupying himself with some cool lids.

When I really need to get something done, my go-to is apple sauce or yogurt.  Tricky to pick up with hands and since he hasn't completely mastered the spoon, it provides pure entertainment for awhile.

In the past week, Deaglan started loving his puzzles.  He goes through them without hesitation and laughs when it goes into the correct spot!

When I am not putting him to work, he still loves throwing/kicking his bouncy ball around the house.  One day, he enjoyed a yummy cookie under the table…I honestly don't know why he was on the floor.

I would like to continue blabbing about our recent snow & Christmas-y things but the DVR is calling my name.  Glad I could finally fill all of you in some!  Hope you had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying the holiday season.