Cauliflower and Barley Parmesan Bake
This Cauliflower and Barley Parmesan Bake is a satisfying, meatless comfort food meal that vegetarians and meat-eaters will both love!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs uncooked cauliflower florets
- 1 ½ cups uncooked pearl barley, or pearled farro
- 24 oz jar marinara sauce
- 8 oz can tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 oz finely shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ cups water
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 4 oz 2% milk shredded Mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the cauliflower, barley, marinara sauce, tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the balsamic vinegar, garlic, 2 ounces of the Parmesan cheese, the oregano, onion powder, sugar, salt, crushed red pepper, and black pepper. Stir to combine. Add the water and stir again until well mixed. Transfer the entire mixture to a 9x13 baking dish and spread it out evenly. Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for one hour.
- While you’re waiting, combine the remaining ounce of Parmesan with ½ cup of panko breadcrumbs and the remaining teaspoon of olive oil and stir together. Set aside.
- When the hour is up, uncover the baking dish and stir. Check on doneness. You want the barley to be almost finished cooking. Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella across the top. Top the shredded cheese with the panko/parmesan mixture. Return to the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes until the barley is cooked, the sauce has thickened, and the cheese is melted. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
To view your current WW Points for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, click here!
WW Points per (1 ¼ cup) serving: 8 (Points calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)
Nutrition Information per (1 ¼ cups) serving:
268 calories, 38 g carbs, 8 g sugars, 8 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 14 g protein, 9 g fiber, 780 mg sodium (from myfitnesspal.com)
Weight Watchers PointsPlus:
7 per (1 ¼ cups) serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com) Adapted from The NY Times
7 per (1 ¼ cups) serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com) Adapted from The NY Times