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It was in the Guardian magazine and looked tasty and wholesome which is just the thing when you wake up on Saturday morning feeling less than complete and utterly narked by the complete idiocy of the London electorate in voting for an upper class Tory idiot cos he made them laugh on the telly and it hasn’t occurred to their barely functioning brains that this man is now going to be an advert for one of the most important capital cities in the world. The Evening Standard and its unbelievably bigoted stance on everything have brought him to power and have thereby underlined how vital it is that London has a real newspaper rather than a Daily Mail repackaged for unthinking drones.

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Skill level: Easy

Ingredients

• barley - 200g
• 6-10 spears asparagus - depending on girth
• 2 or 3 globe artichokes
• juice of 2 lemons
• 2 large handfuls of broad beans - fresh or frozen
• 1 medium onion
• 1 fennel
• 2 stalks celery
• 2 small turnips
• olive oil - 3 tbsp
• tomato puree - 1 tbsp
• stock - chicken or vegetable, or if you’re feeling particularly energetic, a quick asparagus stock (detailed below)
• a handful of leaves - greens, spinach, or wild garlic
• large tbsp of butter
• parmesan - 50g - finely grated

Firstly soak the barley in cold water for two hours. Rinse and drain thoroughly before use. Then, take the wooden ends off the asparagus, cut the stalks into one inch long pieces and put to one side. If you wish to make the asparagus stock mentioned above, put the trimmed bits in a litre of water, boil lightly for half an hour and reserve until needed.

Next, cook the artichokes with the lemon juice and just enough water to cover them. Once tender, drain upside down to get rid of all water. When cooled, remove the leaves and quarter the hearts. Set aside. Then pod and blanch the broad beans and set these aside too.

Dice the onion, fennel, celery and turnips. Add to a large pan with the oil and some salt and heat gently until tender. Then add the barley and stir in thoroughly, followed by the tomato puree and then sufficient stock to just cover everything. Simmer until the stock is almost absorbed and then add the remaining vegetables and the rest of the stock. Once the stock is absorbed check the barley and if it is now tender enough to eat, remove the pan from the heat. Wilt the green leaves in the pan and stir in the butter and the parmesan. Cover and leave to rest for a few minutes. Finally, check the seasoning and serve in big bowls.

Verdict: This dish really is super tasty. All the vegetables retain their flavours and the barley is a fantastic alternative to rice or pulses. Obviously the addition of butter and cheese at the end does a little to help the fabulousness but really it is an all round flavoursome dish and if there are just two of you it can last at least a couple of meals - depending on your levels of greed.

Drink: Red wine

Entertainment: 12:00-01:00 from series one of 24 as neither blogger has seen the first series. However, blogger D has seen subsequent series which means that certain elements of series one are not exactly going to be a surprise. Blogger D will have to put on her best poker face. It is extremely addictive. All 40 minutes of it. The series should really be called 16. I did the math.