Oh Orzo, how I love thee!

I have a confession... I've never had orzo! So tonight I decided to try it out. I found a great recipe while browsing Annie's blog, Annie's Eats. It looked simple enough and full of flavor.

And... extra bonus... It included a spice I didn't have! Score for me! You see, in an effort to expand our spice rack (and get rid of the old spices we still have from when we moved in 4 years ago) we have been slowly buying one spice a week when out grocery shopping. McCormick came out with an organic line so we've been converting to that as well. This week's spice: Herbes de Provence.

Source: Annie's Eats adapted from Smells Like Home and Food Network

Herb Rubbed Chicken with Creamy Orzo (changes in italics)

• 6 oz. orzo (original recipe called for 8 oz)
• 2 chicken breasts, pounded thin (I cut both in half to make four breasts total)
• 2 tsp. Herbes de Provence
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with juices
• 1 ½ cups fresh broccoli florets
• ½-2/3 cup whipping cream (I used 1/2 cup fat free half and half)
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan (I used 1 ounce)

Bring a saucepan of salted water to boil over medium-high heat. Add the orzo and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Drain, reserving ½ cup of the cooking liquid.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees (to keep chicken warm). Season chicken breasts on both sides with Herbes de Provence (1 tsp. per breast), salt and pepper.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and cook 4-5 minutes before turning. Once chicken has been turned, cook 2 minutes more. Remove from pan and place in oven to stay warm (use oven safe dish).

Add the shallot and garlic to the pan and sauté until tender, about 2 minutes (adding more olive oil if necessary... I didn't). Add the diced tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 4 minutes. Add the broccoli florets to the pan and cook for 4 minutes more, until tender but still firm.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the whipping cream. Add the cooked orzo to the pan and stir to coat. Remove from heat and add grated Parmesan to the pasta mixture and toss to coat. Stir the pasta mixture until the sauce coats the pasta thickly, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to maintain a creamy consistency. Season generously with salt and pepper. Serve with chicken.

Serves 4 (orzo actually serves more like 6)
6 WW points (if calculating orzo at 6 servings)