Boursin Orzo Bake with Sausage and Spinach
It’s All About The Cheese
Boursin orzo bake is the kind of dinner that makes you look like you really have it together — when really all you did was dump some things in a pan and put it in the oven. And I mean that as the highest possible compliment. I made this recipe a couple of weeks ago and my family loved it so much that I turned right around and made it again this week while my college girls are home for spring break. One package of Boursin cheese, a pound of smoked sausage, some orzo, spinach, chicken broth, and heavy cream — and forty minutes later you have a creamy, hearty, absolutely next level dinner that serves a crowd. This one is a keeper, y’all.
🥘 This one’s in my collection of casseroles for a crowd — the ones I actually make when I’m feeding a houseful, gathered in one place.
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Watch me make this Boursin orzo bake from start to finish — or scroll down for the full printable recipe card.
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Boursin Orzo Bake with Sausage and Spinach
Start CookingIngredients
- 1 package (5.2 oz) garlic and herb gournay cheese Boursin brand preferred
- 16 oz orzo pasta uncooked
- 4 cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup heavy cream generous splash
- 1 lb smoked sausage sliced
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- 1 cup grated Parmesan
- Cherry tomatoes optional
- Garlic powder to taste
- Onion powder to taste
- Cajun seasoning to taste
- Salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Don’t Want to Plan? I Got You.Every Saturday I share a full week of dinners, sides, and a dessert — with the grocery list already done. Come grab this week’s Weekly Meal Plans!Method Start Cooking
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Place Boursin cheese in the center of a 9×13 baking pan.
- Pour uncooked orzo around the cheese.
- Add chicken broth and heavy cream, making sure orzo is well covered. Stir gently to mix in seasonings — garlic, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, salt and pepper.
- Arrange sliced sausage on one side of the pan and fresh spinach on the other. Add cherry tomatoes if desired.
- Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
- Remove from oven and uncover. Stir everything together to combine the melted Boursin into the sauce.
- Top generously with Parmesan cheese.
- Return to oven uncovered for 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Video
Notes
Four Weeks of Family-Friendly FoodWhen people gather, I cook. Four weeks of the dinners my crowd asks for — planned, tested, and shopped for. Come see what’s in the cookbook →Why This Boursin Orzo Bake Works
There are certain recipes that make the rounds on the internet for a reason — and this Boursin orzo bake is absolutely one of them. The first time I made it I thought it seemed almost too easy to be that good. Reader, it was that good. Actually it was better than that good. My family demolished it. So when my girls came home from college for spring break and I was thinking about what to make for dinner, this was the first thing that came to mind. Big crowd, easy prep, guaranteed to impress — it checks every single box.
The magic starts with one package of Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs cheese placed right in the center of your 9×13 pan. Boursin is soft, creamy, and packed with flavor — garlic and herb is my personal favorite but chives and shallots is wonderful too. Use whatever flavor speaks to you. The orzo goes in uncooked around the cheese, then you pour in four cups of chicken broth and a generous splash of heavy cream . Make sure that orzo is well covered — you want it to soak up all of that creamy, savory liquid as it bakes.
Building Your Boursin Orzo Bake
Once your broth and cream are in, add your seasonings — garlic powder, onion powder, a little Cajun seasoning, salt and pepper. Then arrange your smoked sausage slices on one side of the pan and your fresh spinach on the other. If you want to add cherry tomatoes , this is the time. Cover the whole thing tightly with foil and into a 400 degree oven it goes for 40 minutes.
When that timer goes off and you pull back the foil, the smell alone is enough to bring everyone running to the kitchen. Give everything a good stir to mix it all together — the Boursin will have melted into the most incredible creamy sauce — then layer your Parmesan cheese generously across the top. Back in the oven uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes until that cheese is perfectly melted and golden. Dinner is done.
A Few Things That Make Boursin Orzo Bake Even Easier
- Make sure the orzo is completely submerged. Give it a gentle stir before you cover the pan so every grain is sitting in liquid. Orzo that pokes up out of the broth gets crunchy and dry — and you want creamy, tender, every-bite-the-same.
- Cover the pan tightly with foil. The foil is doing real work here — it traps the steam so the orzo cooks through properly. If you skip it or do a loose tent, the broth evaporates and the orzo stays underdone. Press the foil down around the edges.
- Don’t skip the Parmesan on top at the end. That extra layer of cheese under the broiler-adjacent uncovered heat takes this dish from “really good” to “you have to make this.” Be generous — a full cup grated, scattered across the whole pan.
- Use whatever Boursin you love. The Garlic & Fine Herbs is my default, but Chives & Shallots is wonderful, Cracked Black Pepper is interesting, and Shallot & Chive is also great. They all melt the same way. Pick the flavor that speaks to you.
- Plan on leftovers — or don’t. This serves 8 to 10 generously, which means I usually have lunches the next day. But the night I made this for my college girls home on break? Zero leftovers. Plan accordingly for your crowd.
Boursin Orzo Bake FAQ — The Questions I Get Every Time
What temperature and how long do I bake Boursin orzo bake?
Bake at 400°F for 40 minutes covered tightly with foil, then uncover, stir to combine, top with Parmesan, and return to the oven uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden. Total bake time is about 45 to 50 minutes. The covered portion is what cooks the orzo — don’t skip the foil. The uncovered portion is what gets you that beautiful golden Parmesan top.
Can I make Boursin orzo bake ahead of time?
Sort of. You can prep all the ingredients ahead — slice the sausage, measure the liquids, get the seasonings out — but I don’t recommend assembling the pan more than an hour ahead. The uncooked orzo will start absorbing the broth before it ever sees the oven, which throws off the texture. If you need a true make-ahead pasta bake, baked ziti or stuffed shells are better choices. This one is best assembled right before it goes in the oven.
Can I use a different Boursin flavor?
Yes — every flavor of Boursin melts beautifully into this sauce. Garlic & Fine Herbs is my default because it’s the most universally loved, but Chives & Shallots gives you a mellower, more onion-forward flavor, Cracked Black Pepper adds a nice bite, and Shallot & Chive is wonderful with the sausage. If your store carries the seasonal flavors (rosemary & black garlic, basil & chive), grab one and experiment. They all work.
What can I substitute for smoked sausage?
Plenty of options. Italian sausage (mild or hot, browned first), chicken sausage, kielbasa, andouille if you want more heat, or leftover rotisserie chicken if that’s what you have. If you’re going meatless, double the spinach and add a can of drained chickpeas or white beans — the dish still works and the Boursin still does its thing. The smoked sausage is what gives this version its hearty, savory backbone, but the recipe is flexible enough to handle a swap.
Can I make Boursin orzo bake without heavy cream?
You can, but I wouldn’t skip it. The splash of heavy cream is what makes the sauce silky instead of just brothy. If you’re out, half-and-half works in the same amount with slightly less richness. Whole milk will be too thin and you’ll end up with a watery sauce. If you’re committed to skipping the cream entirely, add an extra two ounces of Boursin to compensate — the dairy fat has to come from somewhere.
How do I store and reheat Boursin orzo bake leftovers?
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The orzo will absorb more of the sauce as it sits — that’s just how pasta works — so when you reheat, add a splash of chicken broth or cream to loosen it back up. Microwave covered with a damp paper towel, or reheat in a 350°F oven with a foil cover for 15 to 20 minutes. Honestly, the leftovers might be even better than fresh — the flavors have time to meld.
How do I scale Boursin orzo bake for a bigger crowd?
A single batch serves 8 to 10 generously in a 9×13. To double, you have two options: use a larger half-sheet pan (18×13) and double everything one-for-one, or do two separate 9×13 pans side by side. I prefer the two-pan method because the orzo cooks more evenly when the layer isn’t too deep. Either way, the bake time stays about the same — the foil cover does the heavy lifting on cooking the orzo, not the pan size.
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Everything you need to make this Boursin Orzo Bake — click any item to shop on Amazon.
Ingredients
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More Creamy, Crowd-Pleasing Dinners
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- Creamy Beefy Shells — five ingredients and thirty minutes to a pasta dinner the whole family will request again and again.
- Sun-Dried Tomato Feta Chicken — straight from the freezer to the oven, and it tastes like you spent all day on it.
- Spinach Artichoke Boursin Tortellini — the same creamy Boursin, made one-pan on the stovetop in under 30 minutes.
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Boursin Orzo Bake — About Stephanie’s Recipes
Stephanie Longstreth is the home cook, mom, and storyteller behind StephanieCooksForACrowd.com. She cooks for a family of seven in Florida — five kids, two cats, and one husband who appreciates a good meal. Four of her children came home through adoption, and family stories are woven into everything she makes and shares. Find her crowd-friendly recipes, weekly meal plans, and real family life on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest @stephaniecooksforacrowd.
This was VERY tasty and easy to make. I subbed the sausage and broth for the beef versions with a good result. This ended up being a bit more expensive per serving than some recipes I make, so in the future I might save it for a special occasion.
Thank you so much for your review, Andrea!