April is a tricky month to be writing about seasonal food. It’s spring (nearly summer) here in Austin, so we’re dining al fresco, while some of you are likely still wearing winter coats. Spring veggies are starting to fill our farmers markets, but given the variation from region to region, I’m just not sure what’s growing near you.
So I bring to you the whatever-your-season grain salad. It’s more of a concept than a recipe and can be adjusted to use whatever veggies you might have on hand. The basic formula is this: a hearty grain, a handful of greens, a crunchy seasonal vegetable, chopped nuts, and possibly some cheese. I tossed mine with olive oil, squeezes of lemon and a few spoonfuls of kale pesto that I had made earlier in the week.
Farro Salad with Kale Pesto
*serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a side . Scale accordingly.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup farro, cooked (about 1/2 cup uncooked, plus 1 cup water)
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- a big handful of arugula
- 1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- a few good squeezes of lemon plus some lemon zest
- a few heaping spoonfuls of kale pesto (or any pesto)
- a small handful of chopped walnuts
- 2 radishes, sliced
- generous grating of parmesan cheese (a crumbly goat or feta cheese would have also been nice here)
- pinches of red pepper flakes
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Start by cooking the farro. Bring 1/2 cup farro and 1 cup (salted) water to a gentle boil. Reduce and simmer for about 25-35 minutes. (Check it at the 15-20 minute mark, give it a stir to make sure it’s not burning/sticking to the bottom of the pot. It’s done when it’s tender and chewy, not crunchy and not mushy).
- Drain farro, shaking out excess water. Toss it with olive oil, salt, pepper and the arugula.
- Drizzle with balsamic vinegar, lemon, lemon zest, some of the pesto, some of the grated cheese and toss again. Taste and adjust seasonings.
- Finish the salad with radishes, a few more dollops of pesto, and another grating of cheese on top.
*photos & recipe by Love & Lemons
This salad looks to die for.
Love Jeanine from Love and Lemons. Her photos are always so fresh and inspiring. They really make you want to eat everything she makes. This seems like a simple salad that is probably super tasty!
xo Quinn
Quinn Cooper Style
I basically had this exact salad for lunch yesterday without thinking (did carrots instead of radishes)… so thanks for putting it in recipe form! I hadn’t really thought about how incredibly adaptable it is for the seasons. On a side note, I am obsessed with farro right now!!
me too, loving farro!
Looks delicious! I haven’t made many salads with radish, but will have to try it out soon…. and yes I’m wearing my winter coat this morning 🙂
well sadly just after I wrote that it became cold and rainy here too 🙂
My husband and I do Paleo…this is a great addition to our salad recipes! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Can’t wait to try this one out! Central Market has their own little packages of farro that I love.
Camille & Jeanine, if you’re obsessed with farro right now, you have to try Heidi’s Kale Market Salad (http://bit.ly/17gSuEy). I made it all last summer and was completely obsessed. Can’t wait to try Jeanine’s version with the pesto!
LOVE everything about this recipe. But we’re having a hard time finding farro.. it’s not at my local Whole Foods here in Austin (gateway). Where’s the next place to look?
I buy farro on the grains aisle of Central Market in Austin! And it is worth hunting down… my current favorite grain!