​One-Pot Italian Sausage & Cranberry Orzo Recipe Is a Flavor-Packed Dinner by Ocean Spray

Why do we want to put cranberries in everything when the fall and winter months roll around? Because fresh and dried cranberries are delicious! Not only that, the health benefits of cranberries are undisputed. This easy one-pot Italian sausage and cranberry orzo recipe is a quick and easy dinner that the whole family will enjoy eating.

The flavorful orzo and sausage recipe has minimal prep and a short list of ingredients. Here is your shopping list to make this easy one-pot dinner: ground Italian sausage, onion, dried cranberries, frozen corn, orzo, chicken broth, frozen spinach, Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese, black pepper and fresh parsley.

You can make some changes to the recipe to suit your family's tastes (see Recipe Notes). Serve this tasty fall dish for dinner with your favorite side dishes.

Note: 30Seconds is a participant in the Amazon affiliate advertising program and this post contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission or fees if you make a purchase via those links.

Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground sweet Italian sausage
• 1/2 medium yellow onion
• 1 cup dried cranberries (Ocean Spray® Craisins® Dried Cranberries or 50% Less Sugar Craisins® Dried Cranberries)
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 1 cup dry orzo
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 12 ounces chopped frozen spinach bag
• 1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Helpful Products

• Soup Pot
• Cutting Board
• Chef Knife
• Measuring Cups
• Measuring Spoons
• Salt and Pepper
• Grater
• Airtight Containers
• Dutch Oven
• Saucepot

Recipe Notes

• You can mix up this easy one pot family dinner by subbing the Italian sausage for ground beef or poultry.

• Instead of sweet Italian sausage, use regular or hot.

• Add some crushed red pepper flakes for a little spice.

• You could use frozen corn instead of canned corn, and fresh spinach instead of frozen spinach.

• For some crunch, garnish with pine nuts or pumpkin seeds.

Here's how to make it: 

• In a medium pot, add the broth and allow to warm over medium heat, making sure not to boil.
• In a large pot, cook the ground sausage, remove casings if applicable, and break up while cooking on medium-high heat for 5 to 8 minutes. 
• Add the onions, dried cranberries and corn. Sauté for an additional 10 minutes. 
• Add the orzo and heated broth. Stir to combine everything, and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a medium low and simmer for 10 minutes or until orzo is just tender.
• Remove from the heat and fold in the frozen spinach, grated cheese and black pepper. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Ocean Spray.

Nutrition Facts Per Serving

Calories: 742

Total Fat: 43.9g

Saturated Fat: 14.9g

Cholesterol: 129mg

Sodium: 2047mg

Total Carbohydrate: 37.3g

Dietary Fiber: 4.2g

Total Sugars: 7.4g

Protein: 41.8g

Vitamin D: 0mcg

Calcium: 149mg

Iron: 4mg

Potassium: 345mg

Recipe cooking times, nutritional information and servings are approximate and provided for your convenience. However, 30Seconds is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe, nor may you have the same results because of variations in ingredients, temperatures, altitude, errors, omissions or cooking/baking abilities. This recipe has been analyzed by VeryWellFit. However, any nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and it is up to the individual to ascertain accuracy. To ensure image quality, we may occasionally use stock photography.

Need to convert cooking and baking measurements? Here are some kitchen conversion charts. Here's how to submit your recipes to 30Seconds.

Take 30 seconds and join the 30Seconds community, and follow us on Facebook to get recipes in your newsfeed daily.