Asparagus with Creamy Orzo and Chicken

Welcome to the new re-vamped version of this blog -- Sunday Meal Prep -- featuring some healthy, yet yummy recipes in my journey of clean eating.

Today I decided to try a staple spring vegetable -- asparagus! 

Honestly I've never cooked asparagus before. I'm ashamed to say that I don't even know what asparagus tastes like. I've definitely become more adventurous over the last few years about trying new vegetables and trying to incorporate them into meals. It's a great way to add not only a little crunch, but pack some nutrients and filling fiber into lunches and dinners. 

For this week's lunch I followed this recipe here -- of course adding some tweaks along the way. 

First -- the asparagus! 

I chopped off the woody bottom part of the asparagus and then just drizzled some olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder on top. Then, just popped them in the 400-degree oven for a good 10-12 minutes. 

For the orzo - I boiled the orzo to just al dente first. Then, I sauteed 2 tbsp butter and minced garlic on the pan (my favorite sauce base, to be honest!). Once the garlic was browned and fragrant, I added 1 cup chicken broth to the pan and let it warm up a bit. The recipe on the website calls for white wine, but I usually just sub that for chicken broth since I'm not a fan of cooking with wine (although maybe I'll try it one day!). Then, I added the orzo, a pinch of salt, and some pepper and let it cook in the yummy buttery chicken broth sauce until the sauce had been completely reduced and the orzo had soaked up the flavors.

For some extra protein, I added some pre-cooked chicken. Then I just chopped off the spears of the asparagus, cut the asparagus into bite-size pieces, and tossed them with the orzo and chicken. I know, I know -- you're supposed to eat the spears but I honestly just felt weird eating them so I figured I'd just eat the stems instead. Still packed with lots of nutrients and fiber!

The recipe calls for parmesan cheese, but honestly I love this recipe the way it is! Maybe once I put it in my meal prep bowls, I'll sprinkle a bit of cheese to let it melt while microwaving and add an extra flavor and salt.

This recipe was so simple, so yummy, and very creamy/rich without any cream. Definitely a keeper!