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Baked Lemon Rosemary Chicken Meatballs and Creamy Orzo. Quick, easy, colorful, and delicious! Baked chicken meatballs with roasted lemon, cooked together with orzo pasta and baby spinach, then finished with melty cheese. This tasty dish is all made in one pan without even having to boil any water. Simply mix, bake, eat, and enjoy!
And we’re back with yet another one-pan dinner. I’m loving these easy all-in-one recipes this month. Fortunately, they’ve been turning out so delicious!
It’s been busy over here, and long days mean my time in the kitchen is limited. I was just saying on a call today that I always keep things like this in mind when creating recipes. Of course, that should go without saying that they also need to be incredibly yummy. My intention is for my recipes to be approachable, easy, and so delicious…while also looking pretty!
It’s the combo that makes a recipe worthy of saving!
And these cheesy, garlic meatballs fit the description to a T.
My mom mentioned that meatballs sounded really delicious with all the snowy weather and cold temperatures we’ve been having. I thought about sharing another crockpot meatball, but then I had the thought to test out baked meatballs with orzo.
I’ve been enjoying my all-in-one baked dishes so much, so I was curious to test this one out. It’s ended up working out wonderfully and turned into a recipe that everyone has really been enjoying!
Ingredients
- ground chicken, ground beef, ground pork, or ground turkey
- dijon mustard
- shallot, chopped
- garlic powder or a few chopped cloves garlic
- Italian seasoning
- dried rosemary
- smoked paprika
- kosher salt and black pepper
- grated parmesan cheese or ricotta cheese
- extra virgin olive oil
- chopped lemon peel
- chopped fresh dill
- chili flakes
- dry orzo pasta
- dry white wine
- heavy cream or canned full fat coconut milk
- baby spinach, chopped
- shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese
Kitchenware needed
- large cast iron skillet or large dutch oven
- medium mixing bowl, large mixing bowl
- 9×13 inch baking dish
- serving dishes / serving platter
These are the details
Step 1: pre-heat the conventional oven and make the meatballs
I love to use ground chicken or pork for this recipe. Sometimes I’ll mix the chicken and pork if I have both on hand.
Then, add the seasonings to the meat mixture: dijon, shallots, garlic, rosemary and smoked paprika. Then mix in parmesan cheese as well.
Mix everything together and roll it into 2-inch balls. Then, place the meatballs in a baking dish with a little olive oil, chopped lemon peel, dill, and chili flakes. Make sure you have paper towels on hand for clean-up!
Step 2: bake the meatballs
Now, bake the meatballs until they start getting crisp on top.
I like to give them a head start on cooking before adding the orzo. I think this helps them form a nice shape and develop even more flavor!
Step 3: add the orzo
Next, mix the orzo with the oil and meatballs in the baking dish. Add water and wine, and then spinach on top.
No need to boil the orzo. As everything bakes together, the orzo will soak up the water and become perfectly cooked. It’s such a simple way to cook orzo pasta!
Step 4: add the cheese
Pull the dish out, add a touch of cream, then top with either mozzarella or provolone cheese, then bake again until the cheese is all melty and bubbling up.
It’s going to smell so delicious with the lemon and rosemary, and then all that cheese on top! YUM.
Step 5: serve!
Serve the lemon meatballs over the creamy, cheesy orzo. Then I like to add fresh greens and chili flakes on top.
Simple and quick, with very little clean-up, and minimal hands-on time too.
You can serve this up on busy weeknights, but it would be equally great for a small dinner party with friends. Everyone loves this meatball and pasta dinner. Bon apetit!
Looking for other easy weeknight dinners? Here are some favorites.
Creamy White Bean Noodle Soup with Rosemary Bacon.
Mustard Herb Chicken and Creamy Orzo
Crockpot Crispy Buffalo Chicken Tacos with Jalapeño Ranch
Slow Cooker Saucy Sunday Bolognese Pasta
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Crockpot Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Bolognese
Crockpot Garlic Butter Chicken Meatballs with Creamy Orzo
Lastly, if you make this Baked Lemon Rosemary Chicken Meatballs and Creamy Orzo, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
What are the benefits of a Dutch oven?
A Dutch oven can maintain temperatures on the stovetop and in the oven and its tight-fitting lid ensures the recipes you are preparing is cooked thoroughly. Here is a great article that shares the benefits of cooking with a Dutch oven: https://www.foodnetwork.com/how-to/packages/food-network-essentials/what-is-a-dutch-oven
Baked Lemon Rosemary Chicken Meatballs and Creamy Orzo
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 679 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground chicken, pork, or turkey
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- salt and black pepper
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped lemon peel
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- chili flakes
- 1 pound dry orzo pasta
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or canned full fat coconut milk
- 3 cups baby spinach, chopped
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 450° F.2. Add the chicken, dijon, shallot, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, rosemary, paprika, salt, pepper, and parmesan to a bowl. Mix to combine. Roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs). 2. In a 9×13 inch baking dish, combine the meatballs, olive oil, lemon peel, dill, and chili flakes. Bake 8-10 minutes, until just starting to get crisp. Reduce the oven to 400° F. 3. To the meatballs, add the dry orzo. Pour over 2 cups of water and the wine, stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Place the spinach on top. Bake for 12-15 minutes until most of the water has cooked into the pasta, but not all of it.4. Stir the pasta around, mix in the cream, then sprinkle the cheese overtop. Bake another 10 minutes until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling. If there's a lot of oil on top, drain off the excess. Top with fresh dill, basil, or micro greens.
This was delicious!! I used rigatoni and kale, fresh rosemary, and parsley. It turned out great! The pasta was perfectly cooked. I went light on the lemon peel because I was worried about it overpowering the dish, but I loved the lemon flavor when I got a taste of it, so will use the full amount next time. Thanks for yet another great recipe!
Hey Ellie,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your feedback, so glad to hear it was a winner! Have a great week:)
Hi there,
Love this but in the ingredients it lists coconut milk but then it doesn’t say what to do with it in the cooking steps…?
Hi Iona,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! You are going to add the cream or coconut milk in step 4. Happy Sunday! x
We did not enjoy this one. The Italian seasoning overpowered the meatballs. The orzo lacked substantial flavor.
Hi Katie,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it was not enjoyed. xx
What is the best way to reheat
Hey Shaun,
You can cover with foil and reheat on low in the oven. I hope you love this recipe! xT
I’m confused. Do you cook in a dutch over or in a 9×13? Or does it not matter?
Hey there,
You could use either one for this recipe:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
OMG so good! I had extra ground chicken so I ended up upping everything to make 2 batches of meatballs and made them a tad bigger. I split it into two batches. One in the dutch oven and One in the cast iron skillet.
I did use chicken broth and doubled the wine (Chardonnay). I added 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice instead of rind. (My husband has a thing about pesticides on citrus fruit peals).
We have plenty for lunch and to share! The flavor profiles are so good. Thank you as always!!
Hey Bernie,
Yay!! So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! Have a great week! xT
My husband loves orzo and this was the perfect easy meal that made us both happy. I used turkey for the meatballs; next time I’ll use chicken because I think they’ll be more tender. The orzo took longer than the recipe stated, so I thought the meatballs were a bit overdone, and I ended up covering the dish so the spinach didn’t get crunchy. I didn’t think it needed cream, and so didn’t add it–but if I was serving this to company, I would. I wonder if it would work better if I put everything in the dish at the same time instead of baking the meatballs first. Maybe next time I’ll try it.
Hey Judy,
Love to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, thank you so much for making it and your comment! xT
I loved the recipe the meatballs were a little hard to form.my husband love it.
Hey Janie,
Happy Sunday! I appreciate you trying this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it was a hit! x
We loved this dish. 👍🏻Orzo was perfect,
came out moist, and the chicken meatballs were tender and flavorful.
Hey Ellen,
Wonderful! So glad to hear that you enjoyed this dish, thanks for making it! x
Wow I loved this so much! I followed everything to a T and it turned out perfect and not dry at all! I used my Dutch oven and never covered and it was perfect. I am wondering if maybe like a dollop of some like creamy dill sauce would just make it pop even more with the dill that’s left over! Definitely a do again!
Hey Lauren,
Thanks so much! Love to hear that this dish was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! A creamy dill sauce sounds like a great addition! xx
These meatballs turned out so moist and delicious! I had chicken stock on hand and used that instead of water and added a little extra towards the end because my orzo was getting a tad dry. I didn’t have any mozzarella handy so I used parmesan, and I added some lemon juice in just because I love it. This turned out well and tasted like a really yummy risotto!
Hey Natasha,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear that it turned out well for you! Xx
Very tasty, but dry. Not at all creamy like the photos. Could not taste the lemon or dill very well. And this took a while to make– not a quick, weeknight meal.
These are my recipe revisions:
1) Use an egg/egg substitute in the chicken mixture to make the meatballs moist.
2) Use 1/2 -3/4 box of orzo. Use 3 cups of water. Cover mixture and bake for 15 min, stir, then bake uncovered.
3) Use half/half instead of heavy cream and use less mozzarella. Otherwise, it’s just too dense.
Hopefully a crockpot version of this recipe would yield creamy results.
Hi Lena,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear it was dry for you, thanks for sharing your suggestions! xT
This came out so yummy! I didn’t need to use a whole pound of orzo after reading some of comments about being dry I used 3/4 of pound. I also used coconut milk. This was so fast and easy can’t wait to make it again. I heated some sourdough and it was perfect for sopping up the all the yummy cream sauce
Hey Marti,
Thanks so much! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, I appreciate you making it! xx