Preparation & Cooking Time: 45 minutes   
Servings:  6

You will need:

Lamb Brand Barley 320g

Lamb Brand Dry Chickpeas 400g

Lamb Brand Pine Nuts 120g

Lamb Brand Coarse Salt 1 tsp

Lamb Brand Ground Black Pepper 1tsp

Lamb Brand Cardamom 1tsp

Lamb Brand Cayenne Pepper ¼tsp

Lamb Brand Ground Ginger ¼tsp

Lamb Brand Ground Nutmeg ¼tsp

Lamb Brand Ground Cinnamon ¼tsp

Lamb Brand Turmeric ¼tsp

Lamb Brand Fine Table Salt to taste

Life Soft Apricots 100g, diced

Goldstar Pitted Dates 80g, chopped

Vegetable Stock 350ml

Water 350ml

Green Onions 3 small, chopped

Fresh Parsley 160g, chopped

Lemon 1 zest and juice

Olive Oil 4 tbsp

All you have to do:

Soak the chickpeas for a minimum of 5 hours or overnight, changing the water from time to time. Rinse, add to small pot, cover with water and cook over a medium heat until chickpeas are soft. Let cool.

Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large pot on medium high heat. Add the barley and sauté for 4 minutes, stirring often. Add the vegetable stock, water and coarse salt. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 30 minutes or until barley is tender.

Strain the cooked barley through a colander and run cold water over to cool it quickly. Toss and mix in the colander to strain as much water as you can. Lay out the barley on a sheet pan and drizzle olive oil over it. Mix to coat well and set aside.

In a large bowl, add the chickpeas, pine nuts, apricots, dates, onions and fresh parsley and mix well. Add the zest and juice of the lemon and mix again. Add the barley and mix well. In a small bowl combine all spices together and sprinkle it over the barley and mix well. Taste, add some salt if needed.

Let the salad marinate for an hour in the refrigerator before serving. If the barley has absorbed all the olive oil, drizzle a little more on before serving.