Baked Lemon Butter Chicken Meatballs with Creamy Spinach Orzo
Easy to make, bursting with fresh lemon flavor and so delicious! Tender chicken meatballs are baked in lemon and garlic infused butter and served over creamy, cheesy spinach orzo that's all made in just one pot! Serve the meatballs over the creamy orzo and drizzle with extra lemon butter.
Ingredients
Lemon butter chicken meatballs
- 8 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 egg
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon each onion powder, garlic powder & salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Creamy spinach orzo
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 ½ cups chicken broth
- 2 cups milk
- 1 pound orzo (about 2 ½ cups)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 cups baby spinach
Instructions
- Add the lemon slices in a single layer to an oven-safe skillet, and top with the butter and garlic. Cook on the stove over medium-high heat until the butter is melted and the garlic is fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. If you don't have an oven-safe skillet, transfer to an oven-safe baking dish.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Add the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, parmesan, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper to a bowl. Mix until just combined.
- Roll the chicken mixture into 2 tablespoon-size meatballs and place in the skillet on top of the lemon slices (will make about 18 meatballs). Loosely cover the meatballs with tinfoil and bake for 10. Remove the tinfoil and continue baking another 15 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.
- Meanwhile, make the orzo. Heat a skillet or pot over medium-high heat with butter and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Pour in the broth, milk, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and mix in the orzo. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente, stirring frequently so the orzo doesn't stick. Mix in the lemon juice and more broth or milk, if needed.
- Mix the parmesan and baby spinach into the orzo until the cheese is melted and the spinach is wilted.
- Serve the meatballs over the creamy spinach orzo and drizzle with the extra lemon butter.
Notes
Update: Some reviews have mentioned issues with curdling when adding the lemon juice and milk during the same step. I since updated the instructions to add the lemon juice once the orzo is finished cooking. I greatly appreciate your helpful comments/reviews!
Nutritional information is automatically calculated by a third party software and is only an estimate, not a guarantee. This information is provided as courtesy, and you are solely responsible for all decisions related to your health.
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