Lemon Pesto Pasta with Chicken

 I love this time of the year when Summer turns into Fall. It's a break from the summer heat and before the sometimes temperamental weather of winter; the temperature is just right to spend all day outside. Fall (or Autumn) to me means sipping hot apple cider and hot chocolate, football, baking pies, the beautiful colors of the leaves changing,  soups, cinnamon spice candles, layering sweaters & scarves for chilly days, more pumpkin recipes to share, and it's just a cozy time of the year to spend curled up with a good book.

  With that said, here in Texas we are still expected to have temperature in the 90's up to 103F for a little while longer so the sweaters will have to stay in my closet for now.  I also have some new DIY crafts & recipes to share soon since I haven't posted any in a while.

Creamy Lemon & Thyme Orzo

     Orzo is pasta that looks like rice but has the texture and flavor of pasta.
      This dish is so versatile and can be used as a side dish next to so many main course items- steak, chicken, fish, or even with a vegetarian dinner.I found a recipe for rosemary lemon orzo a while back and made a note to buy some orzo next time we went to the store.
     Well, I got the orzo, but I couldn't find the same recipe that I was going to make- I didn't bookmark it. So I tried to find a similar recipe and ended up using a recipe from Eat Yourself Skinny which I changed slighly. I ended up using chicken stock as the main liquid, added some some thyme, and then stirred in some cheese at the end to make it extra creamy. Peas would also be good in this too if your into that kind of thing.If not, then its okay, this is perfectly good without them.
    This recipe turned out to be similar to a risotto in its texture (and creaminess) minus the frequent stirring and the ladleing of hot liquid until absorbed and it only takes about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Creamy Lemon & Thyme Orzo

slighly adapted from: Eat Yourself Skinny

serve: 4

1 1/2 tsp thyme, chopped
1 tsp rosemary, chopped (I just add 1 whole rosemary sprig)
1 1/2 cp orzo
1 tbsp butter
2 cp chicken stock
1/2 cp water
juice of 1/2 a lemon
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp salt
pepper
1/4 cp parmesan cheese (optional)

Saute the orzo in a saucepan in butter over medium high heat. Stir until lightly browned and add in the remaining ingredients, except the cheese.
Bring to a boil and cover. Reduce the heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed, stir every so often.
Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in the cheese, season to taste, and serve.