Baked Barley Casserole

    

       If you are of a similar generation to myself, perhaps the only thing you ever knew about barley is that "Oats, peas, beans and barley" grow from the childhood nursery rhyme.  I didn't know where they grew or why anyone would want to grow them but when I realized that they were the white plump grains that I would fish for in my Campbells vegetable beef soup, certainly before the peas and beans, I began to wonder where I could get more. 

 
     Barley is one of the less commonly used grains in the American diet, severely overlooked in my opinion, and has a fuller, nuttier taste than grains that have made debuts at the forefront of American cooking in recent decades, such as farro and quinoa.  This hearty member of the grain family is a healthy one that doesn't leave you looking for something for dessert after dinner.

    If you've never tried barley, this is a great, easy and satisfying recipe for your introduction.

Baked Barley Casserole

1/4 cup butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1/2 large red pepper, diced
3/4 cup fresh sliced mushrooms (if desired)
1 1/2 cups pearl barley
3 cups chicken broth or stock
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh tarragon or 1/4 tsp.
       dried & crushed tarragon
3 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds
1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon bits

     -Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

     -Melt butter in large pot over medium-high
      heat.  Saute mushrooms in butter until soft.
      Remove mushrooms from butter in pan and 

      set aside.

    -Add onion, carrot and red pepper to pot 

      and cook until vegetables are soft and 

      onions begin to brown.  Mix barley into the

      veggies and stir until coated with butter.  

      Stir mushrooms into barley mixture and 

      season to taste with salt and pepper.  Add

      tarragon and 1 tablespoon parsley.  Pour 

      chicken broth into barley mixture and

      bring to boil over high heat.

     -Butter an ovenproof casserole dish and 

      pour barley mixture into it then cover

      tightly with foil. Place in oven for about 30

      minutes, until barley is barely tender.  

      Remove foil and continue to cook another 

      15 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed.  

     -Adjust seasoning and sprinkle remaining 

      parsley and bacon bits on top.  

      Serve warm.  Serves 8

Saute vegetables and barley in butter.

Add chicken stock and seasonings.