Pearl Barley and Pumpkin Risotto!
With the cooler, wet weather, we thought a warm, hearty pearl barley risotto was the perfect dish to feature this week! Risotto is traditionally made with arborio rice, but if you haven’t tried making it with pearl barley, now is your chance! This barely gives this dish a nutty taste and a little more texture than arborio rice.
This recipe is adapted from Vibrant Plate.
Ingredients:
1 Onion finely diced
3 Cloves Garlic, minced. (Can add 1 Tbsp Seedy Sister Organic Garlic Powder)
1 Carrot finely diced
2 Cups butternut pumpkin, skin removed and finely diced
1 Cup Seedy Sister Pearl Barley
2 Tbsp Parsley finely chopped
3 Cups Vegetable Stock + more if needed
1 Tbsp Plant-Based Cooking Cream (coconut cream works well)
1 Tbsp Seedy Sister Organic Coconut Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat a pot on medium heat, add diced onion to the pot with oil, and gently fry until translucent.
Add in diced carrot and garlic and sauté for a few more minutes until the carrot softens.
Add in diced pumpkin, pour in about 1 cup of stock and simmer on low for around 10 minutes with the lid on, until the pumpkin has softened.
Roughly mash the pumpkin to form a somewhat creamy sauce base.
Stir in the pearl barley and add in 2 cups of stock.
Simmer for around 30 minutes, until the barley softens. You may need to add additional stock.
Once cooked, stir through cream and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve hot and top with chopped parsley.