Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Farro!

I'm in love with farro! And recently I made a salad with it. It was delicious! I found this little recipe in the Oregonian. The salad has 2 ears of cooked corn on the cob, and you slice off the kernels when it's cooked. The farro is soaked in water overnight, then cooked for only 10 mins. in a bit of water. There are chopped chives, thyme, and oregano, all of which I was able to walk to the backyard herb garden and pick fresh! It was so fun to make this salad. It also has a perfect blend of acidity and sweetness, with white wine vinegar, olive oil, and the natural sweetness from the corn. What a great find.
At People's Food Co-op and Food Front you can buy farro in bulk, which is nice because then you can pick out exactly how much you want. Farro is a whole grain, so it's very nutritious. It's an ancient grain; it's been around a long time in Europe and the Middle East and Egypt. Here's the recipe:
Farro Salad with Tomatoes and Corn
Mise en place: Overnight soaking of farro, a wheat grain with a nutty flavor. Cook corn. Toast almonds.
Ingredients:
1 cup farro
2 ears cooked corn
16 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
4 tsp chopped fresh oregano
4 tsp chopped fresh thyme
2 tBsp chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
2 tBsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 tsp white wine vinegar
TT - Salt and fresh-ground black pepper
Place 1 cup farro in a small bowl with water to cover. Let rest overnight at room temperature.
When ready to cook, drain farro and place in small pan with water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook for approx 10 mins, or until tender or al dente.
Scrape kernels from corn and place in a bowl large enough to hold all ingredients. Add tomatoes, the herbs, almonds, olive oil, vinegar, and salt & pepper; mix well. Drain cooked farro and toss with the other ingredients. This salad is best served at room temperature but can be chilled.
Ciao!
Deb