Orzo is one of my favorite pastas to feed my kids because it’s easy for them to eat, even at a young age, and doesn’t need to be cut up! I’m all about cutting out steps in preparation of their plates.
Since the basil is overflowing in our garden, I decided to whip up a batch of Almond Basil Pesto, which is my favorite pesto recipe. I use almonds instead of pine nuts because for one, they’re more economical and two, I pretty much always have almonds in my pantry.
This Pesto Zucchini and Corn Orzo comes together really quickly. I’d recommend starting the water for the orzo first, and then move on to making the pesto and prepping the veggies.
Side note: YES you can absolutely use store-bought pesto! There are a ton of great options for this and honestly, I usually use store-bought pesto. I just happened to have some success with my basil plant this year and needed to use a bunch of it up ASAP.
The great thing about this recipe is that you throw in the shredded zucchini and frozen corn for the last two minutes of cooking time of the orzo. So there isn’t an extra dish that you have to get dirty to cook the veggies in. Hallelujah!
From here, you just toss in some of your pesto and top with a little Parmesan cheese. We ate it warm the first night and cold for lunch the next day – it worked great both hot and cold!
You can serve this to your kids as their main dish or side dish. When we had it for dinner, I served it as a main dish for both Lars and Soren, along with blueberries and plain whole-milk Greek yogurt. I had it as a side dish to a BLT. I also added a couple slices of bacon to Soren’s plate and Lars snagged half of my sandwich even though he adamantly told me he didn’t like bacon when I had previously asked him if he wanted a BLT. So I guess this orzo ended up being his side dish. Regardless, it works either way!
Why Pesto Zucchini and Corn Orzo is great for kids
As mentioned above, I love serving orzo to my kids because of its size and shape. This recipe is also great because I use shredded zucchini, as it becomes less noticeable to the kids. It ends up being the same size and shape as the orzo, and they eat it without really realizing that they’re eating it.
If your kids are new to pesto and you’re not sure they will like the flavor, try adding just a little to the orzo. If you have to dump a bunch of Parmesan cheese on top to get them to try it – oh well! There are worse things, right?! Even when my kids don’t eat something the first time I serve it to them, many times they will on the second or third (or ELEVENTH) time.
Yields 4 adult servings, 8-10 kid servings
10 minPrep Time
10 minCook Time
20 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini (~1 medium zucchini)
- 1 cup frozen corn
- Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
- 2 cups packed basil leaves
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup almonds
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add water to a medium pot and bring to a boil.
- Add the orzo and cook according to package directions, usually 8-10 minutes.
- While the water is heating up and orzo is boiling, prep your zucchini.
- Add the shredded zucchini and corn for the last two minutes of the cooking time. It might take 30-60 seconds to come back to a rolling boil, and that's okay.
- Drain the orzo and veggies and rinse with cold water.
- Return to the pot and add 1/4 cup of the pesto.
- Serve topped topped with Parmesan cheese.
- Enjoy!
- Add all pesto ingredients to a food processor and pulse until desired texture.
Notes
Kid servings can vary a lot! When you are trying a new food with a child and you're not sure they are going to like it, try offering a small amount - just a tablespoon or two.
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