Recipe of the week

“Risotto isn’t as high maintenance as its reputation,” said Mark Bittman in Dinner for Everyone (Clarkson Potter). Because hearty whole-grain barley works best in this brilliant-red risotto, it might require an hour of kitchen time. But you don’t

have to babysit the pot, and the rewards are striking.

1½ cups whole-grain (“hulled”) barley • ½ cup chopped walnuts • 4 to 5 cups vegetable stock or water • 4 tbsp olive oil • 1 onion, chopped • ½ cup dry white wine

• 12 oz beets, peeled and grated • 2 cups arugula or chopped beet greens

• In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast barley, shaking pan often, until golden and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and toast walnuts the same way. Warm stock or water in a saucepan. • Add olive oil to skillet; heat. Add onion and cook until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add barley and cook, stirring often, until glossy and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then add wine. Cook, scraping any browned bits from bottom of pan, until liquid bubbles away.

• Ladle in warm stock, a cup at a time, letting the stock cook away each time before you add more and stir. Mixture should be neither soupy nor dry. Adjust heat so mixture bubbles, and stir frequently. • After 20 minutes, add beets. Continue cooking, tasting barley regularly—you want tender but with a touch of crunch; it could take 40 minutes. When barley is ready, add greens a handful at a time, stirring until each addition is wilted. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with toasted walnuts. Serves 4.