From the Pantry: Chicken Parmesan Baked Orzo

On a weekly basis we are going to post meals that we whipped up from items that can commonly be found in one's pantry.

Today's entry is Chicken Parmesan Baked Orzo. This is a very simple dish that turned out amazinggg!

Ingredients
- 1 cup Orzo pasta
- One can of store bought Alfredo sauce (we used Classico)
- 1 cup of shredded cheese (we had mozzarella, but any Italian cheese would work!)
- 1 tablespoon half & half
- Breadcrumbs (if you don't have any you can make your own out of toast or mash up some crackers)
- 1 bag of frozen broccoli (other veggies that would work; peas, spinach, mushrooms, asparagus)
- 2 boneless chicken breasts (or even better- leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon pepper or to taste

Preheat the oven to 450.

Boil the Ozro al dente.

In a frying pan, heat the oil and add the chicken. Sprinkle the onion and garlic powder on the chicken. Cook until no longer pink in the middle, but be careful not to overcook (because you will also be baking this).

Dice up the chicken into bite sized pieces.

Drain the noodles and pour into a mixing bowl. Combine in the bowl all of the remaining ingredients with the cooked chicken except the breadcrumbs. The broccoli does not have to be thawed because it will cook in the oven.

Pour the mixture into a baking dish. We used single serve dishes, but can be whatever you prefer.

Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and some extra cheese.

Bake at 450 for about 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the dish is bubbling.

Enjoy!