Mushroom Barley Risotto for the win!

In my quest for cooking something new, I decided to try out this Risotto recipe I stumbled across in a recent Cooking Light magazine. I was excited to try it because I knew I had a bag of barley and dried porcini mushrooms in my pantry. When I first made this dish I thought it lacked some flavor so I changed the recipe and added more chicken stock. Now you could experiment and add a little bit of butter to this dish if you're looking for something a little more rich. This is a great main dish but it also works as a side dish if you want a little something else on your plate. I had it with some chicken and snap peas just the other night. Please note this recipe actually makes a huge quantity of Risotto so if you're cooking for just 2 people I would cut it in half.


MUSHROOM BARLEY RISOTTO
Yield: 4 servings (serving size 1 2/3 cups)

INGREDIENTS
2 cups boiling water
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 (8 oz) package cremini mushrooms, sliced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups uncooked pearl barley
3 Tablespoons brandy
3/4 cup water
2 cups, lower sodium chicken broth (you can use vegetable broth as a substitute)
3 oz grated fresh Pecorino Romano Cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine 2 cups boiling water and porcini mushrooms, let stand 20 minutes. Drain mushrooms through a sieve over a bowl, reserving liquid. Finely chop mushrooms.
2. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add olive oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add onion, cook for 4 minutes. Add cremini mushrooms, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add porcini mushrooms and garlic, cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add barley, cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add brandy, bring to a boil. Cook until liquid almost evaporates (about 1 minute) stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in reserved mushroom liquid, 3/4 cup water, and broth, bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 60-70 minutes OR until liquid evaporates and barley is tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir about 1 oz grated Romano cheese into the barley mixture. Sprinkle with parsley. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top.

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