Farro: You Can Take It With You (Apparently)

This is a post about farro.

People have been enjoying farro for a very long time. Farro images can be found on the walls of the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs. The Egyptians stocked the tombs of their leaders with all the good stuff they would need in the afterlife–including the best foods. For them, that “you can’t take it with you” ethos just didn’t cut it. That they wanted to take farro with them into the next world seems to me to be a pretty strong endorsement of farro.

Don’t know if you like farro? Farro is a whole grain in the wheat family. It’s protein-, fiber- and vitamin B-rich, so it is good for you. It is also a cinch to prepare. You boil it. Period.

And the taste?  Farro tastes a bit like brown rice but nuttier in taste and chewier in texture, or, as a National Public Radio writer described it, farro has “cashew notes and undertones of cinnamon.” That NPR description made me laugh. It sounded like one of those pretentious wine reviews. You know the ones. The wine reviewer waxes poetic and describes all the “notes” of the vintage—raspberry, oak, cheesecake…whatever.

Here is a great farro dish. This hearty farro salad has a bit of everything–al dente farro, sweet golden raisins, green Castelvetrano olives with their distinctive briny flavor, and an abundance of glorious walnuts. And, did I mention a wonderful honey dressing?

I particularly enjoyed the satisfying mouth feel of the combination of farro and the coarsely chopped toasted walnuts. I think you will, too.

This recipe was featured in this month’s Food and Wine Magazine’s 40th-anniversary special edition as one of its 40 best-ever recipes. The original recipe appeared in the magazine in 2003 as a “salad of the month” pick and was the creation of Heidi Swanson of the 101 Cookbooks blog.

You need to add this great salad to your cooking repertoire. Like the pharaohs, you’ll want to take it with you wherever you’re planning on having a great meal.

Here is my adaptation of the recipe. Be sure to check out other great farro recipes that have been posted on Blue Cayenne  here, here, here, and here.

Farro Salad with Olives

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Ingredients

• 1 1/4 C. uncooked farro
• 4 C. water
• 1/2 t. fine sea salt (or more to taste)
• 1 C. walnuts (or more to taste)
• 2 1/2 C. pited green olives (preferably Castelvetrano) chopped (adjust the amount of olives to your taste)
• 4 scallions (white and light green parts only--finely chopped)
• 1/3 C. snipped fresh chives
• 1/4 C. extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 T. fresh lemon juiice
• 2 T. golden raisins (or more)
• 1 T. honey
• 1/2 t. crushed red pepper
• Shaved asiago cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Put farro, 4 cups of water and salt into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and partially cover the pan.
3. Let farro simmer until it is tender. This will take approximately 20 minutes. Drain the farro and spread it on a baking sheet. Let the farro cool and dry out a bit.
4. Toast walnuts in preheated oven until the nuts are lightly browned and fragrant. This will take from 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the walnuts from the oven, let them cool and then coarsely chop them
5. Whisk oil, lemon juice,honey, chives and crushed red pepper in a large bowl. Season with salt. Add walnuts, olives, scallions, and raisins to the dressing. Toss with the farro.
6. Refrigerate salad over night to let the flavors marry.
7. Serve salad on a platter, garnished with shaved cheese. Serve at room temperature.

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