Ingredients
- 150 g pearl barley
- 1/2 Onion with a clove stuck to it
- 1 Garlic clove - cut in half
- 1 branch fresh thyme
- 1/2 Bay leaf
- 450 ml water
- 180 g broccoli
- 80 g feta cheese - minced
- 60 g black olives - sliced
- 60 ml purple onion – thin slices
- 150 g cherry tomato
- 40 g sliced almonds, toasted
- 1 tbsp spearmint – thin strips
- 1 tbsp basil – thin strips
- 100 ml sicilian lemon - juice
- 40 ml extra virgin olive oil
- salt and ground pepper
Instructions
- Cooking the pearl barley - Rinse and drain the pearl barley, put it in a cooking pot along with the onion (with the clove stuck to it), the garlic, the thyme and the bay leaf. Cover with water and add salt to taste. Cook for approximately 35 minutes, until the grains are soft. Drain and let it cool off.
- Cooking the broccoli - Rinse them well, separate them into small bouquets and cook with a lot of salty boiling water. When the broccoli bouquets are cooked al dente take them off the boliling water, drain and immediately immerse them in very cold water, best if with ice cubes. Drain and keep in refrigerator after cooling off completely.
- Preparing the dressing - Mix the lemon juice with the olive oil, the salt and the ground pepper. Cut the purple onion in strips and let them rest in a container with water for 30 minutes. Mince the feta cheese. Slice the olives in strips. Rinse the cherry tomatoes. Toast the almond slices in the oven at 150°C. Slice the spearmint and the basil in strips.
- Place the cooked pearl barley (cold) in a large container and add the cooked broccoli (cold), the drained purple onion and the cherry tomatoes. Season with the sicilian lemon dressing and toss them well. Add the minced cheese, the black olives, the toasted almonds and the herbs. Toss gently. Keep in the refrigerator.