Pearled Barley with Zucchini and Saffron

Suitable for Vegans.

Ingredients:

Approx. 1\2 L Vegetable broth, 1 or 2 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 150 g Pearled barley (does not require soaking), Pepper to taste, 1 Sprig of parsley, Salt, A few saffron pistils (5 or 6), 200g Zucchini.

Instructions and procedure:

Prepare the vegetable broth by boiling half liter of salted water with a carrot, zucchini and a potato (alternatively you can use vegetable stock cubes or powdered stock). Clean and wash the zucchini carefully and cut them into small pieces and brown them in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. When they are browned on all sides, (2-3 minutes will suffice), pour part of them into a pan: add the barley and let it toast for a few minutes. The remaining part of the courgettes will be creamed later. At this point, we proceed as a normal risotto, gradually hydrating the barley with a little hot broth at a time. The optimal cooking of pearl barley is 30 minutes. After 20 minutes, the remaining zucchini (which have finished cooking in a pan) will be soft: we can make a cream with the immersion blender, possibly adding a little hot broth if necessary. Add the courgette cream to the barley pan. We put the saffron pistils in a little broth, then add it to the barley. Keep stirring to distribute the saffron and the cream of courgette properly. Make sure to finish cooking by seasoning with a little fresh parsley..