Veggie Comfort

 I had a sick toddler on my hands and it was beginning to snow outside, bundling up the kiddo and heading to the store didn't sound very appealing.  Instead, I went shopping in my own pantry and devised a meal based on what I found.  The result was a butternut squash, chard, and barley casserole.  It was coated in a béchamel sauce and baked, but the veggies and barley alone would make an awesome side dish to any meal.  It is a such a luscious, earthy and hearty meal you won't miss the meat. There are more steps than I normally like to tackle on a weeknight, but you can make everything in advance and bake it off when you're ready. I decided to switch it up a little and added multiple pictures with explanations below each picture. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 1 sm-med butternut squash, diced
• 1 small onion or 1/2 large onion
• 1 clove of garlic minced
• 1 bunch if chard chopped, stems removed and diced (rainbow or red)
• 1c. pearl barley
• 2c. chicken stock
• 1/4c. flour
• 4T. butter, divided
• 1/2c. parmesan, divided
• 2 c. milk (I used 2%)
• 1/2t. nutmeg
• 1/2c. bread crumbs
• salt and pepper

What I found in my panty/fridge

To start this meal, peel and cut the butternut squash into bite size chunks toss in olive oil salt and pepper and roast them at 400 for 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile dice half a large onion, clove of garlic, and the stems of chard, add them into a nonstick skillet with 1T. of olive oil and salt and pepper, sautéing them until tender, about 10 minutes.

In a separate pan, (I used a sauce pan) add 2c. of chicken stock and 1/2c. of water and bring to a boil.  Add 1c. pearl barley and cook until tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.

Roasted Butternut Squash, Chard, Onions and Barley - delicious on it's own!

Once all the components are cooked (chard mixture, squash, and barley with it's cooking liquid) combine them all together and let simmer on low heat.

A creamy bechamel sauce to combine it all

 To make the béchamel, add 3 T. of butter with 1/4c. flour, and whisk under medium heat for about 1 minute.  Slowly whisk in about 2c. of milk and bring to a boil, whisking frequently.  Once boiling, turn off the heat and add 1/4c. grated parmesan and nutmeg.  Pour béchamel into barley, squash and chard mixture. Stir to combine and spoon into casserole dish.

 

Top with breadcrumbs and parmesan and bake until golden

For the topping use 1/4c. parmesan, 1T melted butter, and 1/2c. bread crumbs, mix together and place on top of the casserole.  Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes, or until top is golden brown.

 Yumoliciousness!