Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Orzo – Weight Watchers

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Today was the official first day of school for my kids. That means waking up early! Booooo!!!

As much as I didn’t feel like making dinner, I did it. It would have been so easy to stop by and pick up a $5 pizza, but I powered through that urge and went to the grocery store instead.

I’m so happy I did! Not only because I didn’t eat pizza, but also because this cheesy broccoli chicken orzo was delicious!

I’ve said before that I’m a huge fan of rotisserie chickens. It’s a great way to speed up a recipe.

But, there is something else I do when I don’t want to rely on a store bought chicken.

I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or tenders), season them up and bake them. Then I’ll keep the chicken in the fridge for a few days.

It’s great to have on hand. I’ll do a quick chicken salad for lunch or use it for dinner recipes.

That chicken is what I used for this recipe. How easy is that? I seasoned the chicken with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. It brought much more flavor to the recipe than a rotisserie chicken would have.

There were a few things I did to keep this recipe low in points. One thing is that I didn’t use a lot of butter.

I used 1 teaspoon of butter when cooking the orzo, and one teaspoon of butter for the cheese sauce.

I kept the cheese sauce low in points by using low-fat cheddar cheese and skim milk.

Just a few little tweaks to make this a healthy recipe and you would never know. It’s full of flavor!

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Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Orzo – Weight Watchers

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

30 mins

 

Yield: 3 (1 cup) servings – 6 Freestyle points per serving

Keyword: freestyle, weight watchers, WWFreestyle

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup uncooked orzo
• 2 teaspoons butter, divided
• 2 1/2 cups fat-free chicken broth, divided
• 1 cup broccoli, chopped
• 1 cup boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• 1/4 cup low-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons skim milk
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Melt 1 teaspoon butter to a preheated frying pan.

2. Add the orzo. Cook until the orzo is slightly browned (about 3 minutes) stirring often.

3. Add 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the orzo. It should be simmering.

4. As the broth evaporates add 1/4 cup of broth. Continue adding the chicken broth and stirring until the orzo is cooked, about 10 minutes.

5. When the orzo is almost cooked add the broccoli. Add another 1/4 cup of chicken broth so the broccoli cooks.

6. In a small saucepan melt 1 teaspoon of butter and add the milk, cheese and garlic powder. Whisk until it is melted and smooth.

7. Add the chicken to the orzo, then add the melted cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.