barley-asparagus "risotto" DELICIOUS
 

I got this from a weight watchers book and it's SO GOOD. I was a little skeptical of it because of the barley, but holy heck it's delicious. And really filling!!

ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
1 cup uncooked barley (it calls for the quick-cook kind, I used regular and partly pre-cooked it)
3 cups fat-free chicken or veggie brother
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces (I did 1 inch)
1/4 cup sliced fresh chives
1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
a little salt&pepper
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese (USE FRESH!!!)

Warm oil, saute onions until soft, about 6 minutes. Stir in barley and cook, stirring, about 1 more minute.

Add broth, cover and simmer over low heat for 8 minutes; stir in asparagus and simmer 2 minutes more (I simmered a LOT longer to get the asparagus cooked to how I want it, and to evaporate the liquid because I improvised with regular barley). Remove from heat, stir in chives and vinegar; season to taste with salt and pepper. Spring with cheese and serve.

1 cup per serving, 6 servings.


It is SO good. I thought it would need a ton of cheese but I only sprinkled a little in my bowl and mixed it in, and it got all creamy with the broth. Oh man. Try it, asparagus is in season!

Oooh gonna write this one down! Thanks!

We just bought some aspergrass this morning. It's on sale here right now for $1.50/lb. It usually goes lower, but I wanted to make sure I got some for Robert for Easter dinner. I'll have to show him this recipe and see if he'd like ne to make it. I don't like aspergrass, but maybe I would cooked this way. I keep trying new veg. Thanks so much!

Barb

We had this for dinner tonight. I actually ate the aspergrass. Still not at the top of my list for veggies, but it was definitely palatable. The recipe is AWESOME! I added 8 oz. of raw mushrooms and used the quick cooking barley. I will definitely make it again. Tomorrow night is turkey burgers and we'll have the barley risotto for a side dish.

thanks so much for sharing the recipe!

Barb