Dinner

Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar is for Dinner.

Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar takes 10 minutes to prepare.

Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar takes 45 minutes to cook.

Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar makes 6 servings.

The ingredients for Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar are:

2 tsp Olive oil
1 Medium Onion, minced (chopped or however you want it)
1 cup uncooked pearl barley (quick cooking one means faster cooking time, if you have the normal just means longer time cooking barley before adding asparagus)
3 cups fat free chicken or vegetable broth (I used chicken)
1/2 lb of asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces (I bought one 'bunch' and used them. About 10-12 in the bundle I bought)
1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
salt/pepper to taste
2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese

With quick cooking barley I figure under 30 minutes to cook, with the normal barley 45-50 minutes for barley, but then the rest only takes a couple minutes.

Here is how you make Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar:

Warm oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, til onion is tender. Roughly 6 minutes. Add 1 cup barley and cook for about 1 minutes (to slightly brown I think) , then add broth cover and simmer over medium/low heat til barley is done. With quick cooking barley about 8 minutes, with the regular pearl barley it took 45-50 minutes. Barley should be tender but a little bit chewy. There should be a little liquid in the pan but not overmuch. If it looks soupy you may need to cook off a bit more of the liquid (I did. I simply turned up heat and removed the lid then cooked it for a extra 5 minutes to reduce the liquid.)At this point add the asparagus and stir it in, placing the lid back on.Cook 2-3minutes, then remove from direct heat. Stir in chives and vinegar; season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. Yields about 1 cup per serving.(If you like your asparagus a bit softer and not 'crisp-tender' simply cook it for another minute or two)Without the parmasan cheese it saved about 8-10 calories per serving. Number of Servings: 6Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user TAMI_E.

The nutritional information for Barley Asparagus "Risotto" w/Balsamic Vinegar is:

• Servings Per Recipe: 6
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 157.4

• Total Fat: 2.5 g
• Cholesterol: 3.8 mg
• Sodium: 517.3 mg
• Total Carbs: 29.6 g
• Dietary Fiber: 6.0 g
• Protein: 5.2 g