Creamy barley breakfast bowls with hazelnuts and figs

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This delicious barley breakfast bowl recipe from Kate Doran is naturally dairy-free, and vegan if you swap the honey for maple syrup or agave nectar. Made with a homemade hazelnut milk, this breakfast will give you the perfect start of the day, and holds plenty of sweetness thanks to beautifully roasted figs.

First published in 2016

Pearl barley is high in fibre with a natural nutty sweetness that works wonderfully with the homemade hazelnut milk. It isn’t a quick cooking grain, so you might want to start these breakfast bowls the night before, especially as the hazelnuts require soaking. The cooked barley will keep in the fridge for several days, making this the perfect healthy breakfast to meal prep for the working week.

Leftover pulp from making the hazelnut milk can be added to smoothies, baked oatmeal or dried and used as flour in cookies and tray bakes.

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Barley breakfast bowls

  • 200g of hazelnuts
  • 900ml of water, filtered,plus more for soaking
  • 175g of pearl barley
  • 1 vanilla pod, halved and seeds scraped
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 4 figs, large and ripe, halved
  • 1 tbsp of runny honey, plus extra for serving (or use a vegan alternative)
  • 1 orange, small, juiced and zested

Method

1
Preheat the oven to 160°C/gas mark 3
2
Spread the hazelnuts in an even layer on a baking tray and roast for 15 minutes, stirring twice until fragrant and toasty and the skins begin to crack
3
Remove from the oven, allow to cool completely, then flake off the papery skins. Transfer to a bowl, reserving 50g for garnish, cover with water and leave to soak for a minimum of 3 hours, or overnight
4
Drain the soaked hazelnuts and blitz in a blender with 700ml filtered water. Strain the mixture through a nut milk bag (or a muslin bag will do nicely). You should have just under 700ml hazelnut milk
5
In a medium saucepan, combine 500ml of the hazelnut milk, the remaining 200ml water, pearl barley, vanilla pod and seeds
6
Bring to a low boil then reduce to a simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until most of the liquid has been absorbed, for 35–40 minutes. Remove from the heat, fish out the vanilla pod and stir in the cinnamon
7
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4
8
While the barley is cooking, place the fig halves in a roasting dish. Toss with the honey, orange juice and zest and bake for 15 minutes or until soft and sticky
9
Divide the barley porridge between 4 bowls and top each portion with 2 fig halves. Roughly chop the reserved toasted hazelnuts and sprinkle over the top
10
Serve immediately, with a splash more hazelnut milk and a drizzle of honey, if you like

Kate Doran is the blogger behind 'The Little Loaf', specialising in nostalgic baking recipes.

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