Eye for a Recipe

This recipe from Ina Garten’s new cookbook Cook Like a Pro, is based on the farro salad served at New York City’s Charlie Bird restaurant. Farro is cooked in apple juice or cider, then tossed with a lemony vinaigrette, pistachios, parsley, mint, tomatoes and radishes. Delicious!

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

I used pure apple juice instead of cider. Be sure to use freshly squeezed lemon juice, genuine Parmesan cheese that does not contain additives and pistachios with no colour or preservatives added.

This salad contains arugula, herbs, tomatoes, radishes and pistachios.

Toss the cooked farro with the vinaigrette and let stand for 15 minutes.

Charlie Bird's Farro Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup (250 ml) pearled farro (6 ounces/170 g)

1 cup (250 ml) fresh apple cider

2 bay leaves

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup (125 ml) good olive oil

¼ cup (60 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ cup (125 ml) roasted, salted pistachios, whole or chopped

1 cup (250 ml) roughly chopped fresh parsley

1 cup (250 ml) roughly chopped fresh mint leaves

1 cup (250 ml) cherry or grape tomatoes, halved through the stem

1/3 cup (85 ml) thinly sliced radishes (2 to 3 radishes)

2 cups (500 ml) baby arugula

½ cup (125 ml) shaved Italian Parmesan cheese

Flaked sea salt, such as Maldon

Preparation:

Place the farro, apple cider, bay leaves, 2 teaspoons (10 ml) salt, and 2 cups (500 ml) water in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, until the farro is tender. (If all the liquid is absorbed before the farro is tender, add a little more water.)

Drain the farro and transfer to a large serving bowl. Discard the bay leaves.

Meanwhile, in a small measuring cup, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt, and ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) pepper. Stir the vinaigrette into the warm farro and set aside for at least 15 minutes to cool. Before serving, stir in the pistachios, parsley, mint, tomatoes, and radishes.

Add the arugula and lightly fold in the Parmesan so as not to break it up too much. Sprinkle with the sea salt and serve immediately. Serves 6.

From Cook Like a Pro by the Barefoot Contessa

In this recipe from the New York Times, farro (a type of wheat grain) is cooked on top of the stove then topped with salmon fillets. While the salmon steams, toss cucumbers, radicchio and dill with a lemony dressing. The farro turns out savour and chewy, the salmon is moist and the salad adds colour and crunch.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

All ingredients in this recipe are additive-free.

Cook onion and farro until grain is toasty

Add water and simmer

Meanwhile, make salad

Farro is done when most of the water is absorbed and the grain is al dente

Place salmon fillet on top of farro, cover and steam

Remove skin from salmon before serving

Farro with salmon, cucumber, radicchio and dill

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons (75 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

1 onion, finely chopped (1 cup/250 ml)

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 cups (500 ml) farro (12 ounces/340 g), rinsed and drained

1 lemon

3 mini (or Persian) seedless cucumbers (7 ounces/198 g)

1 small head radicchio (5 ounces/141 g)

⅓ cup (75 ml) packed finely chopped dill

4 boneless salmon fillets (4 ounces/113g each, and about 1-inch/2.5 cm thick)

Preparation:

Heat 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of the oil in a large straight-sided skillet with a lid over medium heat. Add onion, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring often, until starting to turn clear, about 3 minutes. Add farro, sprinkle with salt, and cook, stirring, until the pan is dry and the farro smells toasty, about 2 minutes. Stir in 2 ½ cups (725 ml) water. Bring to a boil, then cover skillet, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, zest the lemon into a large bowl, then squeeze in its juice. Cut the cucumbers in quarters lengthwise, then slice into ½ -inch (1.25 cm) slices crosswise (you should have 2 cups/500 ml); add to the bowl. Quarter and core the radicchio, then thinly slice into ¼ -inch (0.67 cm) strips (you should have 3 cups/750 ml); add to the bowl. Add dill, remaining 2 tablespoons (30 ml) oil and a pinch each of salt and pepper to the bowl, and toss until evenly coated.

When the farro is done, season the salmon with salt and pepper. Uncover the farro. Most of the water should be absorbed and the grains should be al dente. Set the salmon on top of the farro in a single layer, skin side up if applicable. Cover and steam to desired doneness, 6 to 7 minutes for medium-rare. Remove from the heat. If your salmon has skin, grip a corner with a paper towel and peel off and discard; repeat with the remaining fillets. The skin should come off easily in a single piece.

Divide the farro and salmon among bowls, flaking the salmon into pieces if you like, and top with the cucumber salad. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.

From the New York Times

If you’re in the mood for comfort food, try this sausage and squash with farro, a form of wheat that is nutty and slightly chewy when cooked. Sauté the squash, toast the farro, add fresh sage and stock and then bake until the farro is tender and the liquid is absorbed. Meanwhile, cook the sausage. When the farro is ready, add the cream and half the cheese. Serve topped with the sausage, cheese and sage.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

I use Imagine brand chicken stock, which is additive-free, and President’s Choice Free From sausages, which are preservative-free. Genuine Parmesan contains no additives or colour.

Farro is a type of wheat that is nutty and chewy when cooked

Sauté the squash

Toast the farro

Bake the squash and farro in stock

Cook the sausage on top of the stove until cooked through

Serve the farro topped with sausage, cheese and sage

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil, divided

1 small butternut squash (about 2 lb/1 kg), peeled and cut into ¾-in/1.9 cm cubes (about 4 cups/ 1L)

2 cups (500 ml) farro

1 teaspoon (5 ml) chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish

4 cups (1 L) unsalted chicken stock

1 teaspoon (5 ml) kosher salt

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) reshly ground black pepper

½ pound (250 g) sweet Italian sausage, casings removed

⅓ cup (75 ml) heavy cream

½ cup (125 ml/about 2 oz/57 g) grated Parmesan, divided

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 300ºF (150ºC).

Heat 2 tablespoons (30 ml) oil in a Dutch oven or wide, heavy pot with lid over medium-high. Add squash and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.

Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and farro to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until farro is toasted, about 5 minutes. Add sage and cook 30 seconds more.

Return squash to pot; add stock, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover, and transfer to oven. Bake until farro is tender and liquid is mostly absorbed, about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high, breaking it into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat; set aside.

Remove farro from oven and stir in cream and half the cheese. Serve topped with sausage and remaining cheese; garnish with sage.

From Real Simple

If you’re tired of your roast chicken recipe, try this new take on it from Food and Wine. Remove the backbone of the chicken, flatten it and brown, skin-side down, in a skillet on top of the stove. Then roast it in the oven. Meanwhile, roast carrots and mushrooms and toss with farro, a hearty grain similar to barley.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Use freshly squeezed lemon juice and make sure the nuts do not contain preservatives.

Remove backbone from chicken, flatten and brown, skin-side down

Toss vegetables together and roast

Roast chicken in oven and let it rest before carving

Mix roasted vegetables with cooked farro

Pan-roasted chicken with warm farro salad

Ingredients:

One 4-pound (1.8-kg) whole chicken, backbone removed and chicken cut in half

5 tablespoons (75 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) unsalted butter

3 sage sprigs

½ pound (226 g) small (not baby) carrots

1 pound (454 g) mixed mushrooms, chopped, any tough stems discarded

1 ½ cups (375 ml) farro

1 tablespoon (15 ml) fresh lemon juice, plus wedges for serving

½ cup (125 ml) chopped toasted hazelnuts

Chopped parsley, for garnish

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 450° F (232° C) Set racks in the middle and lower thirds of the oven. Rub the chicken all over with 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. In a large cast-iron skillet, melt the butter. Add the sage sprigs, then add the chicken, skin side down, and cook over moderately high heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Turn the chicken over and roast in the middle of the oven for about 40 minutes, basting occasionally, until cooked through.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes. Reserve the pan juices but discard the sage.

While the chicken is cooking, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the carrots and mushrooms with the remaining 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast the vegetables on the lower rack of the oven until golden and tender, about 20 minutes. Let cool slightly, then slice the carrots. Transfer the carrots and mushrooms to a large bowl.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan of salted boiling water, cook the farro until al dente, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain well. Add the farro to the vegetables along with the lemon juice, half of the hazelnuts and ½ cup (125 ml) of the reserved chicken pan juices; mix well. Transfer to plates, top with the remaining hazelnuts and garnish with parsley. Carve the chicken and serve it with the farro and lemon wedges. Serves 4.

From Food and Wine