Ingredients
Mushrooms
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 oz baby bella mushrooms or crimini
salt and pepper
Creamy orzo
1 cup orzo uncooked
2 cups chicken broth or stock
5 cloves garlic minced
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning or Herbs from Provence
½ teaspoon paprika or more
¼ teaspoon salt or more, to taste
5 oz fresh spinach
½ cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes or more, to taste.
Instructions
Cook mushrooms
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, high-sided, heavy-bottomed skillet. Cook sliced mushrooms, generously seasoned with salt and pepper, on medium-high heat for about 1 or 2 minutes until lightly browned and softened. Remove half of the cooked mushrooms from the skillet to a plate.
Make creamy orzo
To the same skillet with the half of cooked mushrooms, add uncooked orzo, chicken broth, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer (medium-low) and cook for about 5 or 10 minutes, occasionally stirring to prevent the orzo from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the orzo is cooked through.
Add fresh spinach during the last 5 minutes of cooking the orzo.
Add ½ cup of cream. Stir everything on low-medium – do not bring the sauce to a boil.
Season with salt and more smoked paprika, if desired. Stir in the remaining half of the cooked mushrooms.
When serving, sprinkle a small amount of red pepper flakes over the creamy orzo.
