Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi

This recipe is one of the first recipes I've made where I made good use of orzo. I think it's a lot easier to make than rice and able to hold in more flavor than rice. If you ever want to cook with orzo, I recommend cooking it in beef or chicken broth, depending on the dish you want to combine it with. The shrimp was flavorful, but the orzo really completed this dish.

Source: Stephanie Cooks, adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked orzo

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

7 teaspoons unsalted butter, divided

1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp

Garlic Powder (several heavy dashes)

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 can of chicken broth

Parmesan cheese (I used shredded instead of grated)

Directions:

Spray a small sauce pan with cooking spray. Add the orzo, stirring frequently until slightly toasted. Pour in the chicken broth. Cook until almost all of the broth is absorbed. Place orzo in a medium bowl. Stir in parsley and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cover and keep warm.

While orzo cooks, melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add half of shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer shrimp to a plate. Melt 1 teaspoon butter in pan. Add remaining shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer to plate.

Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in pan. Add garlic powder to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in shrimp, juice, and pepper; cook 1 minute or until shrimp are done. Stir the orzo back into the skillet. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.