For the last few years, I’ve been making them lunch at least three days a week. It’s become a thing and to make it even more special, we do a bible study at the lunch table. It’s become a core memory for all of us, feeding the body, feeding the soul.

These lunches take less than an hour, and sometimes are simply left-over dinners reheated and redone.

Orzo with Italian Sausage and White Beans (Cannellini Beans) is a perfect pre-ride lunch, full of carbs, protein and flavor. It only took 30 minutes to make and not one bite was left in the pan.

Orzo will absorb a LOT of liquid so make sure you do not throw out the pasta water. Keep adding until you get

Today, I had some spicy Italian sausage, (loose), white cannellini beans, passata, orzo, heavy cream, chicken broth, and a little white wine. The beans, passata and pasta are staples. You can make very quick meals with these ingredients. The sausage was a plus and we happened to have it. Of course, this dish started with sofrito, that is carrots, onion and celery.

The boys absolutely love this pasta dish of white beans and rigatoni and want it every week. This is kind of a spin on that. It’s easy comfort food, and even though it’s now Spring, there’s always time for the kind of food that makes you happy.

You might not know what passata is. You will find it in jars in the grocery store next to canned tomatoes. I like this because, you can use just the amount you want and then keep in refrigerator for at least a week.

Ingredients for Sausage Bean Pasta Recipe

• Italian Sausage
• Passata (found in jars, a tomato puree)
• Cannellini Beans
• Orzo
• White Wine
• Chicken Broth
• Heavy Cream
• Rosemary
• Garlic

More Pasta Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Pasta with Peas and Bacon
• Tuscan White Beans Pasta
• How to Cook Pasta like an Italian
• Hearty Itakian Beef Rigatoni

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Orzo Sausage Beans Recipe

Course Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Italian sausage, orzo

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Loose Italian Sausage
• 1 pound Italian Sausage
• 1 can Cannellini Beans
• 1 cup Tomato Passata
• 1/3 cup white wine optional
• 1 pound Orzo Pasta
• 1/2 cup Heavy cream
• 2 sprigs Rosemary
• 1/2 cup Pecorino Cheese at the table

Instructions

• Begin this dish by boiling a large pot of water for the orzo. (Begin this, while cooking sausage in another pot). Cook pasta until al dente. Do not throw out pasta water, which will be added to dish.
• Heat oil in large frying pan or dutch oven, (large enough to fit the sausage and pound of pasta.
• Sauté garlic cloves until golden. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces and cooking all way through.
• Remove garlic cloves. Add passata, which will be just enough to mix into sausage. This is not a tomato sauce dish. Add in sprigs of rosemary.
• Add white wine if using and cook down on low for about ten minutes to cook off alcohol.
• Rinse can of beans. Add to dish.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Add in orzo pasta. Mix thoroughly and add one ladle of pasta water. The starchy pasta water will help to thicken. You might need to add more passata. You can judge this if you think you need more. I never add more than one cup.
• Stir in heavy cream at the end.
• Serve with grated pecorino cheese.

The post Orzo, Italian Sausage, White Beans appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

You can keep this grain free or serve with orzo. I served the orzo on the side, as this makes this soup a lot more family friendly (Without the pasta, it’s a perfect keto or low carb soup).

While this is a simple soup, it’s a hearty rustic soup that requires a little bit of finesse.

The original soup had chunky tomatoes, but I refined the broth to a tomato broth using a hand blender. The original soup had arugula, which I love a lot, but I thought kale would hold up much better, and it did. You could use any green you prefer, but I wouldn’t use spinach, unless you only add it raw as you serve it, so it doesn’t disintegrate.

I didn’t make the meatballs super small or bite-sized, because I wanted them to be tender. I made them slightly smaller than usual, baked them for 15 minutes, and added them to the soup about 30 minutes before serving.

The result of this super easy to make recipe was nothing short of spectacular.

The broth is a light tomato broth, the meatballs are grain free and orzo is an option to add in for those in the family who eat pasta.

When I fed it to the family, I added in some cooked orzo. The key to this soup is tender meatballs, sultry tomato broth, greens, and lots of Pecorino Romano cheese.

I talk about this cheese all the time and how we are addicted to it. It’s a sheep’s cheese, whereas Parmesan is a cow’s milk cheese. It aged, dry, salty, tangy and often okay for people who are lactose intolerant. You could even add a dollop of ricotta cheese.

Warm yourself up with this delicious easy soup.

NOTES: You can keep the orzo separate and serve it as an option. This way those who are gluten free or carb counting can thoroughly enjoy this soup too. Let me know how much you’ve enjoyed this soup.

More Ideas for Italian Meatball Soup

• Add any macaroni, such as dittalini, or tiny shells.
• Replace kale with arugula, or spinach.
• Add dollops of ricotta.
• Add rice or cauliflower rice.
• Add a can of white cannellini beans.
• Add any leftover vegetables.
• Add a little heavy cream to the broth.

Soup Bowls

These soup bowls (amazon) are perfect for this soup.

More Italian Style Soups from Spinach Tiger

• Italian Summer Vegetable Soup
• Italian Sausage Lentil and Kale Soup
• Spicy Italian Soup with Sausage
• Italian Eggplant Soup
• Lentil Sausage Soup
• Quick and Easy Ministrone Soup
• Ribolita, a Tuscan Soup

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Homemade Italian Meatballs Soup

Italian Meatball Soup

Course Soup

Cuisine Italian

Keyword keto meatballs

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Baking Meatballs 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds grass fed beef
• 1/2 pound ground pork or more beef
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup freshly grated pecorino romano divided
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh Italian Parsley divided
• 2 cloves garlic finely minced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 quarts boxed chicken broth
• 28 ounce San Marzano Tomatoes (can)
• 2 cups kale or spinach
• 1 cup dry orzo optional

Instructions

• Season meat with salt and pepper
• Add remaining ingredients (except greens and orzo )and very loosely, gently mix together. You don't want the meat to be compacted, as that will make the meatballs tough. (Save some parsley for garnishing. Have extra pecorino for topping soup.)
• Form into medium sized balls. You can make these into bite sized meatballs, but I prefer larger meatballs, which are more tender.
• Place foil or parchment paper on baking sheet.
• Bake meatballs for 15 minutes at 375 degrees or until outsides seems browned. Set aside.
• In soup pot, add just enough olive oil to cover bottom of pan. Add can of tomatoes, crushing with your hands. Add in broth. Cook on medium heat until tomato broth is hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Use immersion blender to blend the tomatoes to make a cleaner broth.
• Cook orzo al dente according to directions in separate pot minus one minute. You can also use small macaroni. Add to broth to finish cooking.
• Add in meatballs and optional greens.
• You can choose to serve orzo on the side or put into the soup.
• Serve with parmesan or pecorino romano. Garnish with more parsley.

Notes

Milk: You can skip milk. Do not substitute with almond or coconut milk as it will affect the taste. If you do skip milk and are using grass-fed beef, add a few tablespoons olive oil. Another way to add in some fat and flavor is to add in some chopped proscuitto, about a slice per pound.

 

The post Italian Meatball Soup in Tomato Broth appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Chicken with orzo, tomatoes and spinach is the one pot dish your family will love, and there are many options for making this tasty Italian dish.

Use Your Own Favorite Chicken Tenders with Orzo

You can make this with your favorite frozen chicken tenders OR you can make my chicken cutlets found here or my chicken tenders, found here. I won’t judge you,  if you buy frozen tenders. Just seek out quality chicken. You can also use tenders that are not breaded.

We can recommend Springer Mountain Farms (this is not sponsored), and they have a gluten free breaded product. Produced with no antibiotics, never fed animal by-products and are American Humane Association Certified.

Italian Chicken Orzo Pasta Can Be Made Gluten Free

Orzo is one of our favorite pastas because it’s so easy to make and easier to eat. It’s like rice but it’s pasta.

You can also substitute rice in this dish or use a gluten free pasta if you need to.

I found this gluten free orzo pasta on line.

Italian Chicken Orzo Pasta can be made on a sheet pan.

Most of this dish is made on a sheet pan. You can put your breaded chicken and tomatoes both on one sheet and bake for about twenty minutes. In the meantime, you cook the pasta. If you make the pasta in a dutch oven, you can put it together and serve it from one pot. The spinach is added to hot orzo in its raw state with some olive oil (another food trick I love).

All you need to do now is add in some good parmesan or pecorino cheese and voila, you have meat, pasta, veggies all in one bowl. Chicken Orzo Pasta  is comfort food without all the long kitchen time, so don’t let summer keep you out of the kitchen. Make this in twenty minutes and be a kitchen star. It also reheats well.

I have a week’s worth of chicken and pasta dishes which your family will also love, and you’ll never get bored.

Healthy Chicken Pasta Recipes Here.

Happy pasta eating!

More Easy Dinner Recipes Found Here

More Italian Recipes Found Here

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Chicken with Orzo, Spinach, Tomatoes

An easy Italian pasta chicken dish with orzo, chicken, spinach and roasted tomatoes.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 16 ounces dry orzo
• 1 tablespoon salt for pasta water
• 8 chicken strips
• 1 pint grape tomatoes
• 2 cups pre-washed baby spinach
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley for garnish
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes optional This dish can be made in one dutch oven or large pot.

Instructions

• This dish can be made in one dutch oven or large pot.
• Cook the orzo according to package instructions. Salt water before adding pasta).
• Bake chicken parmesan strips according to package instructions.
• Toss tomatoes with small amount of olive oil, just enough to glisten and bake on same baking sheet as chicken at same time.
• Tomatoes will burst open. Set sheet pan aside.
• Drain pasta.
• Add in olive oil, black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Add tomatoes, raw spinach, and gently toss.
• Cut chicken cross wise or serve in whole pieces over the orzo.
• Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and parsley.
• Serve with optional red chili flakes.

The post Italian Chicken Orzo Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes, Spinach appeared first on Spinach Tiger.