Warm barley salad
6
Points®
Total time: 22 min • Prep: 10 min • Cook: 12 min • Serves: 4 • Difficulty: Easy
This simple side dish makes a wonderful accompaniment to any spring meal, and you'll love how quickly and easily it comes together. The combination of salty capers and feta, and a slightly sweet vinaigrette is fantastic. Oregano and chives are also star players in this salad. You can replace the dill and scallions with a quarter teaspoon of dried crushed oregano and two tablespoons of minced chives. Also, for extra flavor and color, consider stirring two cups of torn baby spinach leaves into the salad just before serving and increase the dressing to taste (just keep in mind that this could affect the nutritional value of the recipe).
Ingredients
Uncooked pearl barley
1 cup(s), quick-cooking variety
Table salt
¼ tsp
Feta cheese
½ cup(s), crumbles
Capers
1 Tbsp
Dill
1 tsp, minced
Scallions
¼ cup(s), chopped or sliced, minced (green parts only)
Low-fat vinaigrette salad dressing
4 tsp
Black pepper
¼ tsp
Lemon zest
1 tsp, freshly grated
Instructions
1
Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium-size pot; stir in barley and salt. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until barley is tender, about 10 minutes. (There may still be some water in the pot. If so, cover the barley and set it aside for 10 minutes for the liquid to be absorbed. Or you can drain the barley).
2
Spoon cooked barley into a serving bowl; add cheese, capers, dill, scallions, vinaigrette, pepper and lemon zest. Stir gently but well; serve warm. Yields about 3/4 cup per serving.
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