It’s not that I hate to go to the grocery store…
I just think it can be such a time waster when there are so many better things to do…
so I often raid the pantry and fridge to come up with recipes such as this Fresh Vegetable Orzo Alfredo
I had some fresh green beans, a zucchini, 1/2 of a red pepper and some tri color orzo in the pantry. I also had my “go to” light Alfredo sauce and some freshly shaved Parmesan in the fridge. I ended up saving the corn for another day, but toss anything in here you wish
Cook the orzo in boiling salted water about 5 minutes, then add the green beans. Cook a few more minutes then drain. Put your colander over the hot pan and add the red pepper and zucchini and cover
Let that steam about 5 minutes to soften pepper and zucchini. Or put the pan with a little water back on the stove and steam the veggies that way.
Turn orzo and veggies into a greased baking dish.
Add Alfredo sauce and stir
You don’t have to use a lot of Alfredo or cheese to get a creamy cheesy flavor, so it’s not as sinful as it sounds…plus think of all those veggies 🙂
Season and add 2 oz of Parmesan and stir
Top with remaining Parmesan and refrigerate until you are ready to cook it.
Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes
Top with french fried onions during the last few minutes if desired
These are my favorite kind, Fresh Gourmet, you can find them with the croutons near the salad dressings
This kind actually tastes great right out of the bag, but you do want them to get warm…BUT, be careful, they burn quickly!
Fresh Vegetable Orzo Alfredo
Ingredients
- 1 cup orzo [I used tri-colored]
- 2 large handfuls fresh green beans
- 1 medium zucchini
- 1/2 red pepper
- 2 heaping T light Alfredo Sauce
- 3 oz. shaved Parmesan divided
- salt and pepper
- french fried onions for topping optional
Instructions
- Cook orzo in boiling salted water in a large sauce pan.
- Add green beans after 5 minutes. Remove from heat after 8 minutes and drain in a steamer/colander that fits the sauce pan.
- Add zucchini and red pepper cover and let steam for 5 minutes, or add 2 inches of water to the sauce pan and return to burner and steam vegetables until soft.
- Put orzo and vegetables into a prepared baking dish. Stir in Alfredo sauce, 2 oz. of Parmesan and salt and pepper. Top with remaining Parmesan. At this point dish can be refrigerated for up to 36 hours.
- Remove cover before baking at 325 for 30-40 minutes until hot and beginning to brown. Top with onions during the last 5 minutes of baking if desired. Makes 4 servings.
Plenty of time to go back out!
This would make a great side dish for your Labor Day BBQ~ it has vegetables, pasta and onion rings all in one Laborless Dish!
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