Ingredients

Method

• 260 g barley
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1 cup water
• 250 g streaky wood-smoked bacon, roughly chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 t brown sugar
• 1 T Dijon mustard
• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 2 T fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 2 avocados, halved
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

Ingredients

1. Place the barley, stock and water in a pot and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 40–45 minutes, or until the barley is cooked through but still has a bit of a bite. Turn off the heat and leave the barley in the saucepan for 30 minutes to soak up all the liquid.
2. Fry the bacon in a nonstick pan over medium to high heat until golden and almost crispy. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute. Turn on the heat and add the remaining ingredients except the avocado. Stir until well combined.
3. Fold the bacon mixture through the barley and serve each portion with half an avo. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Cook's Tips: To make the perfect avocado rose and get in on the Pinterest and Instagram trend - follow these simple steps:

• Halve a slightly underripe avocado, remove the skin and the stone.
• Place half, cut side down, on a board and slice horizontally as thin as possible.
• Fan out the slices so that they form a long line, each slice overlapping the next.
• Starting from one end, curl the slices towards the centre to create a rose shape.
• Season and serve as is, or on top of scrambled egg, salmon or chilli con carne.

Find more amazing avocado recipes here.