Total time: 10 min • Prep: 10 min • Cook: 0 min • Serves: 1 • Difficulty: Easy

Here is a complete meal in a bowl that's a perfect hearty grain salad for take-to-work lunches or a quick, no-cook last-minute dinner—that is if you've pre-cooked the barley and have the kale prepped and ready to go (or you’ve bought pre-chopped). Pearl barley has a wonderful chewy texture and nutty flavor, and it cooks in about 25 to 30 minutes; hulled barley takes about 40 minutes. Swap in whatever you have on hand such as quicker-cooking brown rice or quinoa for the barley, baby spinach or arugula for the kale, and chopped walnuts or pistachios for the almonds.