Despite breaking all the “rules” of risotto, this bacon and barley version is intensely delicious.

It starts by ditching the rice in favor of quick barley, a common soup ingredient that takes just 10 minutes to cook. Barley has a chewier and in some ways more satisfying texture than the traditional arborio rice called for by most recipes.

To lend deep savory flavor to this risotto, the butter normally used to saute the onion (and often to briefly toast the rice) is replaced with bacon fat. No, it’s not the leanest thing in the world. But it is good.

You get the bacon fat by first cooking several strips of bacon. The cooked bacon is removed from the pan, then later added to kale, which is briefly wilted to create a delicious green bed on which to serve the risotto.

If you’d rather lighten up this dish, you could use just one slice of bacon and a bit of olive oil. The flavor won’t be as intense, but you’ll still be able to appreciate the taste.

Many risotto recipes also call for heating the broth before adding it to the rice. As long as your broth is at room temperature, this isn’t necessary for this version.

The goat cheese stirred in just before serving lends a wonderful creamy counterpoint to the bacon. The more traditional (and more flavorful) Parmesan cheese would compete too much with the bacon. Grated cheddar also would work.

*Either beef marrowbones or shinbones will work in this recipe.
#Dried great northern beans, navy beans, or cannellini beans can be used.

I make this with organic canned kidney beans since I don’t have a pressure cooker yet, so I’m going to rewrite the recipe to reflect that, but if you have dried, you can certainly pre-cook them. Also, this is another recipe we sometimes double (the leftovers are great for days).

It was incredible cooked in a pumpkin (<a href="http://flickr.com/photos/chanale/297551026/">see photo</a>).

This makes for great lunch box or picnic fare. When we have it for dinner, we double the recipe because it makes for good leftovers, too! The recipe calls for the quinoa to be boiled like pasta, but I prefer simmering it like brown rice, so I’ve adjusted the water in the ingredient list accordingly (you may have to use up to 2 c.) and have rewritten the directions.

Delicious and filling. I like to alternate this one with “Ancient Grain Raisin Cereal.”

This is my favorite morning cereal. If you already have the toasted mix in your pantry, it cooks up in under 15 minutes. You can substitute steel-cut oats for whole, but don’t use rolled oats. Pearled barley will also work, but it’s not as nutritious as hulled.

Makes perfect rice everytime.
To minimize any loss of water through evaporation, cover the saucepan and use the water as soon as it reaches a boil. An 8-in ceramic baking dish and foil. To double the recipe, use 13 × 9-inch baking dish; the baking time need not be increased.