Bacon Cheeseburger Orzo

  

  

   I was recently in the mood for a comfort meal. You know, the kind of cheesy casserole-y kind of meal that always hits the spot and makes you feel just a little bit better. But what to make? First, I decided that it should be a stove top meal because it’s just too hot to turn on the oven. Then I took a quick inventory of my fridge and pantry to see what would work. 

 This is sort of how it happened:

 “ …. so.. what kind of protein…  ground beef.. that works.. a few last pieces of bacon.. perfect.. and now a few aromatics.. onions.. definitely… bell pepper, got it… what else.. minced garlic.. that’s a must…. And now for the starch….  Rice? Pasta? Orzo… YES…. And now to make it cheesy.. DONE.”

 Does anyone else do this? Just see what you have and make something out of it? Of course, sometimes I’ll have a recipe to follow, but in this case, it was what I usually refer to as a ‘throw-together” meal. (I think I must’ve gotten this method from my Mom). 

 Anyway, I mentioned it to my nephew, Daniel, and he said “ There’s no way that that’s bad.” 

 I mean, he’s not wrong. If you put a bunch of your favorite ingredients in a casserole, you’re all but guaranteed to hit all the right notes. In this case, it was so good that I immediately thought “I need to write this down before I forget what I did!” I already know I’ll be making this one again soon!

  I hope you’ll try it too. It’s easy to make and definitely hits the spot!

A few strips of bacon, cut into lardons
1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, roughly chopped
1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup mustard
8oz Velveeta cheese
8oz Sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup orzo pasta
3 cups beef broth (or water)
Chopped scallions for garnish


Place the bacon in a large pan. Turn on the heat to medium low, and let it slowly come up to heat. Saute the bacon until slightly crispy. Drain any excess fat and save it for another use. Now add the beef, onions, peppers, and garlic. Meanwhile, in a small pot, bring the broth to a boil and add the orzo. 
Continue to sauté until the meat is brown, and the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Now add the ketchup, mustard, and cheeses.
When the orzo is cooked, add it to the beef mixture along with any remaining broth. Give everything a good stir until well combined. Turn off the heat, and let it stand for about 10 minutes. Top with sliced scallions and serve. 


Tips:
 Can you cook everything in one pot? Probably. But since I wasn’t sure how soupy it would be, I cooked the orzo separately to see if it would need any more liquid. I wound up adding all of the broth anyway. Turns out the orzo was VERY thirsty and it soaked it right up. If you want to do everything in one pot, I would add the broth and orzo right after the beef is browned. Then add the ketchup, mustard, and cheeses at the end after the liquid is absorbed. 
 Do you really need the ketchup and mustard? No. Don’t like it? Just leave it out! But it definitely makes it taste more like a cheeseburger! 
For leftovers, just add a splash of water and reheat in the microwave, or store in airtight containers in the freezer.