Happy Monday!  Hope you had a good weekend.  I wanted to share with you a simple side dish that can replace your normal run of the mill grains such as rice or pasta.  I find, for me anyway we tend to get in a rut of only choosing rice and pasta as our grains.  I am trying to keep an open mind and use grains such as quinoa, bulgar, and barley.  They are very simple to cook and absorb any flavor you throw at them.

For today’s post, I started with barley and follow the directions and boiled them in plain water.  Then I added some sauteed mushrooms and corn, a little bit of butter and a hint of red wine.  I let that reduce down before adding it into the cooked barley.  Results were delicious and I must say, simple to make.

Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup Pot Barley
• 1 Cup Frozen Corn
• 1 Cup Mushrooms
• 1/4 Red wine
• 1 Tbsp. Butter
• Zest of 1/2 Lemon
• Salt and Pepper

Method

1. In a medium sauce pan, follow the instructions on the barley and cook accordingly.
2. In a larger pan, start by adding 1/2 Tbsp. butter and saute the mushrooms with salt and pepper.   Once cooked down, about 4 minutes add the red wine and reduce.  After most of the wine has evaporated add the corn.
3. Continue to saute the corn so that it starts to brown.
4. Set aside when cooked to your liking
5. In the barley, once all the water is evaporated, stir in the remaining butter, lemon zest.
6. Now add the mushroom and corn mixture.  Toss gently and incorporate.  test for flavor adjusting if needed.
7. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip:  Using alternative grains throughout the week will prevent boredom at the dining table.  Something we all should aim for to keep our food interesting. 

Monday is upon us.  Another busy week in the hopper.  I will pop back in on Wednesday for something else to eat.  I hope you have a great start to your week.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Happy Wednesday!  Let me first off say thank you for all the comments on my latest BLOG Makeover Giveaway.  It really is fun to give back to the blogging community and help friendly people out.  I am really impressed with the excitement level and I cannot wait to announce the winner next week.  So many people have tweeted about it and mentioned it on their blogs… so great.

On to the Food

Who loves vegetables?  Who loves simple, easy to make stews that require no really thought and monitoring at the stove?  Who like to eat?  I am hopeful you answered yes to at least two of those questions.  Neither here nor there – I have come up with a recipe that even kind of impressed Mrs. Zesty ( who is not a huge vegetable lover ) which to me means WHOOO HOOOO.

I have been really into lentils as of late and I wanted to come up with an easy way to put these babies to good use.  I had also found a couple of cans of tomatoes on sale.  Loving the sales and I will even use a coupon every now and again if I have them.  Want to see a cool site about cost saving ideas, coupons galore and wicked recipes?  If so check out 5 Dollar Dinners – Erin’s site is jam packed with cool information.

So with the tomatoes and the lentils I had built up an urge for a nice warming stew packed with flavor.  How do you pack it with flavor?  Low and slow and a few key spices.

Ingredients

• 2 15 Oz Cans of crushed tomatoes
• 1 Clove garlic
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 6 Cups water
• 1 Cup pearl barley
• 2 Cups lentils
• 2 Large carrots ( cubed)
• 8 baby Potatoes ( quartered )
• 1 Turnip ( cubed)
• 1 Cup frozen peas
• 1 Cup frozen corn
• 1 Tsp. Celery salt
• 2 Tsp. Chili powder
• 1/2 Tsp. Red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat large sauce pan over medium heat.
2. Add olive oil, turnip and carrots and begin to brown for about 5-7 minutes



3. Toss in garlic, tomatoes, celery salt, chili powder and red pepper flakes;  let simmer for 5 minutes



4. Add lentils and water; let cook on low for 15 minutes
5. Add barley and cook for 10 more minutes; then toss in potatoes and let simmer for another 20 minutes
6. Remove the lid and check for consistency.  If you think it needs more water – feel free to add some.  if you find it is too runny keep simmering with the lid off for 15 minutes.



7. Once the consistency is right, add peas and corn and stri through for 3 minutes.
8. Serve it up with a nice piece of beer bread if you have an.
9. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: By sauteing the root vegetables before simmering the stew you are packing the base of the stew with flavor right out of the gate.  For a more traditional base you may use carrots, celery and onion but I didn’t have any celery and Mrs. Zesty is not a fan of onions at all.

This was a really fun post to write and an even funner stew to make.  I would love to hear your favorite stew ideas if you have any.  Feel free to post your all time fav stew ingredients in the comment section.

Around the Blogsphere

• I guess we better keep voting for me at Goodbite.com and my Campbell’s debut.  I can only assume I am not winning the contest so VOTE now!
• An unbelievable pancake over at Healthy Tipping Point.
• Like Omelets?  try this one from Jaden

I hope you have a great Wednesday and don’t forget to enter the makeover giveaway if you have not done so already.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Happy Friday!  Wow – what a week.  As of 12:03am this morning I made it home.  I had some problems getting internet connection at the airports today so I am putting this post together on very little fuel.

I have been wanting to post this beef barley stew for a couple of weeks now but I keep forgetting.  That is until now.  With the recent stint of cold weather this wholesome comforting dish will make you warm from the inside out.

This recipe is compliments of my mom.  It is really an easy dish to make with either fresh stew meat or left over meat from a roast.

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds lean beef stew meat, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 2 large potatoes, cubed
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) beef broth
• 1 cup medium pearl barley
• 1 Tsp. dried thyme
• 1/4 Tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
• 1/4 Tsp. pepper
• 4 medium carrots, sliced
• 1/4 Cup each frozen green beans and corn

Method

1. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, brown meat on all sides and onion in oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add the broth, barley and seasonings; bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour.
4. Add carrots and potatoes; bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30-40 minutes or until meat and carrots are tender.
6. Stir in frozen green beans and corn at the very end.
7. Check for seasoning
8. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: Try making your own broth and freezing it.  When you have a chicken or roast next time, save the bones and boil them in water for about 2 hours with celery, onion and carrot and then strain the stock and store in ice cube trays for instant homemade stock.

I am back at the office today – so I will be able to catch up on comments, emails and all the great blogs out there.  Thanks so much for stopping by and by all means do not forget to sign up for the giveaway.  Leave a comment and enter to win.

Happy Friday! Have a great weekend… the holidays are fast approaching.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty