Faux risotto.

My husband is allergic to rice so I can't necessarily make risotto the traditional way. So I decided to try out a new dish. This fake-out risotto is made with quick cooking pearl barley, asparagus and balsamic vinegar. It's not as labor intensive as making risotto the proper way and it's not half bad either! This Weight Watcher recipe counts for 3 pts per cup.

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion(s), minced
1 cup(s) uncooked barley, use quick-cooking pearl variety
3 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth, or vegetable broth
3 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth, or vegetable broth
1/2 pound(s) asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup(s) chives, fresh, sliced
1 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese Instructions: Warm oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until onion is tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in barley and cook, stirring, about 1 minute more. Add broth, cover and simmer over low heat for 8 minutes; stir in asparagus and simmer 2 minutes more. Remove from heat, stir in chives and vinegar; season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. Yields about 1 cup per serving.