This blog turns one this week. One whole year of full-force cooking, creating and sharing here, in this little corner of the web that I call mine. I was sitting on a breezy porch at a house on Lake Michigan when I first hit “publish” and I had no idea what a joy this site would quickly become.
I’m thrilled that readers are cooking right along with me, responding so well to the simple, accessible food that I strive to share each week. That’s the whole goal here – to provide you with a reliable place to return to, again and again, for simple yet delicious recipes that won’t take up too much of your time, space, or money.
Case in point? This Lemony Pesto Orzo with Meatballs and Burrata.
KITCHEN LITTLE ESSENTIALS
To make this Lemony Pesto Orzo with Meatballs and Burrata, you will need:
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Okay, so dinner doesn’t get much easier than this. I am alllll for making a fresh, homemade pesto – I do it with relative frequency – but in this case, I’m giving you a shortcut that will get you to delicious in no time at all, no blender required.
I have found that by stirring some freshly squeezed lemon juice into a good quality store-bought pesto (I use Rana – tastes almost as good as homemade to me), you really lift the flavor and give it a brightness that is pretty great. So we’re essentially just going to boost and doctor up a store-bought pesto here and call it good.
How to make this easy five-ingredient meal
What’s more, we’re going to grab a package of pre-made meatballs from the meat/deli section of our supermarket and throw them into the oven with nary a care in the world. Because we’re on Easy Street today, guys, and that means we’re taking the shortcuts and sidestepping the time-sucks and messy hurdles that can sometimes come when you get into making your own meatballs and pestos.
Today, it’s all easy, all the time. This recipe essentially goes like this:
- cook pasta
- stir in pesto and lemon juice
- bake meatballs
- add burrata
- enjoy
What You’ll Need
This is a five-ingredient wonder-meal that tastes greater than the sum of its parts – absolutely. You will get all the credit, as if you’d made the meatballs and pesto from scratch. People don’t care how a meal gets to them just so long as it does, you know what I mean?
The trick is selecting the right meatballs (i.e. not the frozen kind, we’re looking for the kind that are fresh, but just pre-rolled for you. Secondly, you need to pick a really nice pesto. Store-bought pestos are not all created equal, this is unequivocally true. But there are some that are really pretty darn good, I think. Rana is fantastic and lacks that tinny, over-preserved taste that a lot of “over the counter” pestos seems to have.
Rana brand is widely available, so you should be able to snag a container of their standard pesto with ease.
INGREDIENTS
If you like the looks of this Lemony Pesto Orzo with Meatballs & Burrata, you might want to try:
Easy Creamy Chicken and Rice Casserole
Sweet & Spicy Pacific Rim Meatballs
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PrintLemony Pesto Orzo with Meatballs & Burrata
A super quick and easy, five-ingredient, Italian-style dinner that tastes like a million bucks (but only costs a few).
- Yield: serves 4
Ingredients
- 12 fresh, Italian-style meatballs (pre-made in your grocer’s meat department; not frozen)
- 8 ounces orzo, cooked according to package directions, drained and returned to the pot
- The juice of half a lemon
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup store-bought pesto, or to taste (such as Rana brand – it’s so good!)
- 8-ounce ball burrata cheese
- Salt and pepper, as needed
- Olive oil, for drizzling
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Place the meatballs on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick spray, and bake until golden brown and done in the centers; about 20 to 25 minutes (I give them a little check before serving).Â
- Add the pesto to the hot cooked orzo as well as the juice from half a lemon. Stir to mix well.Â
- Serve the pesto orzo with the meatballs piled on top, with big pieces of torn burrata on the side. Drizzle everything with a little olive oil, to finish, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper (especially the cheese)
Keywords: Lemony Pesto Orzo with Meatballs & Burrata
