Asparagus, Salmon and Barley Salad

 During the summer, we have a lot of salads for lunches. And I get asked for the recipes often. But most of them don’t actually have a recipe, they kind of evolve from the ingredients I have on hand.  (and "salad" does not always mean some kind of lettuce, not even close!) When we are cooking dinner, we always try and cook extra, to add to our lunch somehow.  Sometimes leftovers get eaten as is, but more often than not, they get morphed into some kind of soup or salad. Some of the leftovers also get frozen in portioned size baggies.  Grains and proteins work very well for this, my freezer is often full of bags of frozen barley, quinoa, rotisserie chicken, steak, etc. Add to whatever veggies you have on hand, toss with some dressing, and Voila! No more boring leftovers! I will try very hard to write down more of these concoctions-- they are usually tasty and it sucks when I don’t remember how I made them!!

There really are no rules for these concocted salads, just start with what you have, throw in some extra chopped up vegetables and herbs,  throw together a basic oil and vinegar dressing, and check out your fridge and freezer for whatever else may be lurking, just waiting to be turned into something yummy!

Here is what I did with our leftover salmon and asparagus from dinner tonight  for our lunch tomorrow.

Asparagus, Salmon and Barley Salad

1 ½ cups cooked barley (I used leftover frozen pot barley)

1 ½ cups cooked salmon (you could use canned salmon or tuna for this in a pinch)

1 cup of cooked asparagus, chopped into 1 inch pieces

½ cup chopped herbs (I used chives and garlic chives)

1 tsp maple syrup

1 tbsp Hoisin sauce

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar (or other mild flavoured vinegar)

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Refrigerate for a few hours to let the flavours mingle. Enjoy!