Barley Bean Pilaff- vegan, gluten free, soya free

The barley pilaff is on the right, accompanying a cauliflower steak.

I'm hoping you didn't mind too much waiting for this recipe; this pilaff was delicious with the cauliflower steak but it would be a meal in its own right served with more veg and/ or salad, and that's why it has a post all to itself. Barley is a much under-used grain, in my opinion, and makes a good alternative to brown rice. Sorry to tease-I do hope the recipe makes up for it :)

Serves about 6:
2 cups pearl or pot (unpolished) barley
1 scant tab fresh rosemary (use dried if you can't get fresh)
300g cooked red kidney beans (or your favourite bean)
1 1/2 tabs tomato puree (the double concentrated kind)
200g diced or chopped veggies (I used green peppers, green beans and sweetcorn kernels)
2 tabs nutritional yeast (like Engevita brand)
1 tab olive oil
1 1/2 tsps seasalt
1/2 tsp black pepper

•  I can't stand those woody bits in rosemary, so the first thing I did after I picked it was reduce it to powder in the grinder.
• Pressure cook the barley in twice the amount of water, until it is soft and the water has been absorbed. (Or use 650g cooked barley if you happen to have some around.)
• Stir fry the veggies in the olive oil until soft, then mix in the beans.
• Add the herbs, salt, pepper, tomato puree and nutritional yeast.
• Stir this mixture into the cooked barley and heat gently to serve.

This post is shared with Vegan Thursdays Google group