We had BBQ on the menu the other night. While a brisket would be cooking in one oven, I was going to be making ribs in the other. While meandering through the produce department, the conversation turned to sides. We were debating whether to bake some potatoes or do something else when I spotted these ...
Cranberry Beans. I had never seen them before. Neither had the cashiers, because none of them knew how to enter the beans in the register, so they just rang them up as green beans. Gotta love a random discount.
We decided on using the beans in a salad and skipping other sides so we could focus on the good stuff - the beef! These beans have a surprisingly crisp texture and a nutty taste. They made for a nice contrast in play with the barley and other veggies.
I won't bother listing measurements since it's all a matter of preference and how many people you are feeding, but here's what I included ...
- Barley - cooked to desired texture in chicken broth
- Cranberry beans
- Fresh jalapeno peppers
- Red bell pepper
- Cucumber
- Scallions
- Cilantro
- Pistachios
- Red onion
- Sliced black olives
For a dressing, I whisked together a little :
- Olive oil
- White balsamic vinegar
- Lime juice
- Honey
- A touch of Dijon
- Salt
- Pepper
- Cayenne
Colorful, healthy, and delicious. What more could you ask?
This looks so refreshing! I never know what else to do with barley besides using it in soup. Thanks for the new idea!
ReplyDeleteYou should check out my barley chicken then. You can skip the chicken or do whatever you want with that, but the barley part is awesome! Has cranberries, pine nuts, etc. I keep meaning to try it with pork sometime.
ReplyDelete