Salads are a good selection in our daily menu. When you prepare a salad you need to incorporate a variety of vegetables, and if it is possible you can add some kind of legumes or cereals. It is important to choose fresh vegetables and wash them well to avoid parasites.

Quinoa or barley are the favorite cereals for this salad because they have low glycemic index . The quinoa is a seed used as a cereal, it is very nutritive and of great help to health. The quinoa contains proteins and minerals. It reduces the risk of degenerative illness like colon cancer and cardosvascular diseases, and it is ideal for diabetic people. You can eat it twice a week and only 100 grams to obtain the benefits of this cereal.

Barleay cereal is as good as quinoa, it is also rich in proteins and full of minerals and vitamins. It is of great help to the digestion. As It is too difficult to find quinoa in Venezuela, and when you find it, it is too expensive, then I thaught that barley is a good substitute for quinoa. In Venezuela we make bottles of barley for our babies. It is a very hard grain, you need to cooki t for long, but it makes a good food mixed wth milk.

To make this salad You need:

• Lettuce leaves
• Cherry tomatoes
• Small onion
• Half cucumber
• Watercress leaves
• 1/4 of cup pearl barley
• Olive oil
• Plain yogurt
• 1 tablespoon of vinegar
• Salt at taste

Preparation

• Cook the barley until soft. This process can last 30 minutes in boiling water. You should use the barley when it is cold.
• Add vinegar and salt to the barley.

• On your plate of choice, place the lettuce leaves.
• Then, place the watercress leaves.
• Peel the cucumbers and cut into slices.

• Cut the onions into slices and place them on top of the lettuce.
• On top of the lettuce leaves, spread the barley and then place the cherry tomatoes.
• Place Yogurt, vinegar, olive oil and salt on the table, for each person to add to taste.

I like this salad because it contains protein thanks to the barley. You can serve it with whole wheat bread.

_{All images are my property. Captured with a sumasung A5 camera.}