Mexican Barley Salad

Hello again! I probably never again will have two posts in one day! However, this is a special occasion since it is the first day I'm sharing my blog with the world and Claire's napping:) I made this salad about a week ago and Brant and I loved it! Brant and I have a rating system for the meals I make, and Brant gave it a 9/10. I was going to have Claire try it, but it was all gone before she had a chance to! One thing I've noticed about kids- they seem to want to eat whatever their parents are eating. It is amazing all of the foods Claire will eat and seem to enjoy if she sees Brant or I eating them!

Clearly, I need to work on my photography, however, to be fair, I really did not try very hard to get a good picture of this meal. I just snapped the picture really quickly before Brant sat down to devour it. Down the road, I am thinking about taking a photography class so I can take better pictures of the recipes I make and also better pictures of Claire! I will definitely make this dish again, but I will probably tweak a few things so it is more Claire/kid-friendly. This dish was really easy to make and healthy, so I highly recommend it! So here you go!


Mexican Barley Salad

-1 can black beans
-10 baby carrots, chopped*
-1/3 of a cucumber, diced
-10 grape tomatoes, chopped
-1 cup chopped purple cabbage
-2 green onions, chopped**
-1 avocado, chopped
-Handful of cilantro, chopped
-3 cups cooked barley***
-1/2 cup mild salsa (I used Trader Joe's salsa authentica)
-1/4 cup rice vinegar
-Juice of 1 lime

Cook barley or other grain according to package directions. I rinsed my barley in a colander with cold water before I put it in the serving bowl because I knew I would be serving it soon. However, if you plan to refrigerate your salad for a few hours before serving, I wouldn't worry about rinsing the barley.

Cut up all of the veggies and put in a bowl with barley once done cooking. Whisk together salsa, vinegar, and lime. Pour over veggies and barley, mix well, and either refrigerate or serve. Enjoy!

*Next time, I'd either omit the carrots or chop them really small for Claire
**I'd also just top individual portions with the green onion so Claire would not have any in her serving
***I used barley, but any grain would be delicious such as rice or quinoa