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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 have great taste. 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 herbs 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.
Watch the How-To Reel
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 post was originally published on February 29, 2024
Can I use whole milk instead of heavy whipping cream?
Hi Colette,
Sure, that will work well for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Thank you for the inspiration! I made the meatballs and sauce separate from the orzo/spinach.
I used mixed fresh herbs – about 3 T finely chopped in a small processor along with the shallot. Because I made the orzo & spinach separate, I didn’t add any water to the sauce. Just wine, cream, and about 1/4 cup broth. I also added sautéed mushrooms to the sauce.
It was very good. I will make again with more sauce so we can have over pasta or mashed potatoes.
Hi May,
Happy Sunday!! Thanks a lot for trying this dish and sharing your notes on what worked well for you:) So glad it was enjoyed! xT
Can you do this in a Dutch oven !
Hi Joyce,
Sure, I don’t see why that wouldn’t work for you! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Fantastic. Used ground turkey. adding to favorites.
Thanks so much Sarah! So glad to hear this dish turned out well for you with the ground turkey. Have a great Sunday! xT
Mine turned out a bit dry, not really saucy. Trying to figure out why. I went back over the recipe. I had less than a pound and half for the chicken. Maybe that was it. Or I cooked it a bit too long once I added the orzo? I also cooked it in a cast iron pan. Also was expecting more lemon notes. It was hardly there. Otherwise the flavors are good together. I want to make it again more saucy.
Hi Jennie,
Thanks so much for trying this dish and your feedback! You could totally add more lemon next time, so that’s an easy fix! This really shouldn’t be too saucy, but maybe try using a ceramic baking dish next time. You might also like one of these recipes that definitely has more of a sauce to it:
https://fett-weg.today/italian-chicken-meatballs/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/garlic-butter-chicken-meatballs/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/crockpot-greek-chicken-meatballs/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> I hope this helps! Let me know if I can do anything else! xT
This was delicious! I didn’t have dill or rosemary, so I omitted those. Otherwise, I followed the recipe and it was so good. Will definitely add this to our dinner rotation.
Hey Mari,
Love to hear this! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe and your comment:) Happy Sunday! Xx
So many of your recipes are creamy based, which I live, but would like a lower fat content. What is your best sub for the cream to cut fat
Hi Wendy,
Thanks so much for sharing your feedback! You could also use skim milk here, that should work nicely for you. Let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
Amazing! This is so unique and flavorful. A keeper!
Hi Cheryl,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks for making it! Have a great weekend:) xT
I made this for dinner last night and WOW! Such excellent flavor! This is definitely going into the rotation. I used ground chicken for the meatballs. I followed the recipe instructions to a T and it came out perfect!
Hi Jenell,
Love to hear this! Thanks so much for trying this dish and your comment! Have a great weekend:) xT
I cooked this with the following changes. I used beef and pork 50/50 for the meatballs which I browned before putting them in the dutch oven. I also included a chopped shallot browned in the meatball rendered fat.. Also since I had a bunch of fresh basil I substituted it for the spinach. The results were OK but sort of mediocre. Some of the “sustitutions” are surprising. How does provelone substitute for motzarella? As typical on this site technique and ingredients are not well defined,
Hi Russell,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear this was not enjoyed. Unfortunately, I would not recommend subbing basil for spinach, basil is going to give a much more defined flavor than spinach. I tested this recipe with both mozzarella and provolone and they both worked nicely, just personal preference for who is making the dish:) I hope this helps! xx
What is the difference between lemon peel and lemon zest? I always thought if you went deeper into the white of the peel it would yield very bitter results?
This recipe looks amazing!! Thanks!
Thanks Terry! The zest is just the outer, yellow part of the lemon. The peel is going to go into the lemon a bit deeper. I hope this helps! Let me know if you try this recipe! xT
Another delicious recipe I must try! We aren’t fans of rosemary, but it seems it would still be great without it. What other herb would be a good substitute though? Thank you!
Hi Patrice,
Thyme or oregano would also be great to use here! Let me know if you give this dish a try, I hope you love it! xx
Could I use ground Turkey ?
You sure can and it lighter on the stomach.
Hi Annette,
Totally, that would also work well for you! I hope you love this recipe! Xx
Pretty easy to make however I used ground chicken which was rather gross. Next time maybe Bison. Additionally, I left the dill out of the meatball mixture and added in an egg and panko; wanted it to taste more Italian. The pasta mixture was a mess so next time would cook the pasta separately, save some pasta water and then add it in at the end.
Hi Martha,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback. Sorry to hear you did not enjoy the ground chicken. You could of course always use another meat of your liking next time:) xT
Oh sorry! I meant have the recipe suggestions contain recipes with similar herbs – like if fresh dill or thyme is in the recipe, more suggestions with dill or fresh thyme.
Haha I love having leftovers when I make your recipes, so many tasty meatballs for lunch!
I love how you use so many fresh herbs in your recipes, and I can’t wait to make this one (it’s on deck for tomorrow). One thing that happens is I end up with extra and it’s a bit hard to search for other recipes that contain the same or a similar combination. In the recommended recipe sections (explore more and you may also like), could you and your team find a way to have a recipe or two that uses the same fresh herbs? Love what you do, and thanks for what looks like another tasty dish!
Hi Nicole,
Thanks so much for your kind message and making this suggestion! It’s definitely something we can look into doing in the future:) For now, if you adjust the serving size above the list of ingredients, the ingredients list will automatically adjust for you to make smaller portions. I hope this helps! xT
This one didn’t work for me. I did use Gluten Free Orzo so that could’ve been the problem but it was hard in some parts, mushy in other areas. But also the flavors weren’t working – the dill sort of clashed with the rosemary.
Hi Christina,
Thanks so much for trying this dish and your comment, so sorry to hear you had some issues with the dish and didn’t love the flavoring. The gluten free orzo may have had some impact on the end results. Again, my apologies! xx
Try it again with just rice and perhaps less dill or rosemary to keep the two from clashing. You could even just use the rosemary for a more savory flavor. The lemon and dill will complement each other just fine if you leave our the rosemary customize it and make it your own and don’t forget to have 😊.