I need some help with a name for this segment on FitLifeSF… your suggestions welcomed!

Tonight at the FitLifeSF compound, we dined on…

Roasted Vegetable Barley Salad with Ricotta Salata and Dijon Chicken Breast

I had such a wonderful Roasted Vegetable and Farro Salad at Beretta the other afternoon that that I was eager to try cooking with the grain. It is all sorts of good for you, but my local grocery didn’t have it, so I opted for Pearl Barley here. Also deliciously chewy and nutty, with loads of fiber and all-around “good stuff.”

The salad consisted of the last of the grilled peppers and leeks from Sunday’s kabobs, bulked up with a few zucchini and a leek that I found in the way-back of the fridge. Sauteed the veggies up with some garlic, salt pepper and then deglazed the pan with some Imagine Organic Chicken Stock to loosen up all the flavors. Made the barley in the stock as well while we were working out, so it was ready to go. Mixed the veggies and barley and added a few tablespoons of balsamic vinegar. It needed some zest, so I tried to put in the last wedge of lemon I had, but it clearly needed more. I had a grapefruit on hand and used that- it was actually quite yum! It took more salt than I would think, and then, just before serving, I put a tablespoon or so drizzle of olive oil over it- not much at all for 4 servings! This was tossed with some Sweet 100′s and topped with ricotta salata and basil before serving.

For the chicken- easy as can be! Boneless, skinless lemon juice, salt, pepper and garlic. Sautee it up on the non-garlic side to get brown, flip ‘er over, dump in some white wine. Let it cook down until the chicken is cooked, add some mustard (i used Mendocino sweet-hot mustard, which ended up a little too sweet because I hadn’t tasted the wine first.) Let that cook down, taste, season, and add some chicken stock to get it back to the consistency you want.

Bonus: Leftovers!