Another oldie but goodie

We are getting fonder and fonder of our ancient grains around here, and none more so than farro, and not just because it shares so many similarities with our last name. Trust me, there is nothing a traditional Brit loves more than a pun or play on words, and with farro and Farrar, the possibilities are endless!

The following dish was declared by my daughter to be "the best meal I've ever had". Now granted, we don't exactly take her to fine dining establishments very often, and neither are Michelin-starred chefs prone to popping in to cook dinner for us (although if there are any out there reading this with a free evening, my kitchen is always available!). Still, I took her exuberance as a pretty good sign that this dish was a keeper, especially as the meal was greeted with the same kind of response from all around the table, and left-overs were far from copious.

The recipe comes from a print-out I made and stashed away in a folder ages ago. According to the crumpled print-out, the source was saveur.com. My thanks go out to them :-) The farro works beautifully in a risotto, as the grains hold their own and don't become mushy. I've tweaked a couple of things, but not much.

Farro Risotto
(serves 5, with leftovers for two lunchboxes)

4 cups butternut squash, cut into 1/2" cubes (about one average sized squash)
6 TBSP olive oil
3/4 tsp dried sage
2 cups pearled or semi-pearled farro
6 TBSP butter
8 shallots, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 TBSP fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1 cup white wine
2 cups chicken/vegetable stock
4 cups chopped shitake mushrooms (shitakes were kind of pricey, so I did a mixture of them and regular white mushrooms)
2 1/2 cups grated parmesan
2 TBSP creme fraiche

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Toss squash with 4 TBSP olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes until edges are browned and crisp. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with sage.
2. Meanwhile bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add farro, turn heat down and cook for 15 minutes. Drain, reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid, and set aside.
3. In a large pan, heat remaining 2 TBSP olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute for around 3 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

4. Melt butter in the same pan over medium heat. Add shallots, garlic and thyme and let cook until shallots begin to caramelize (around 3 minutes). Add farro and stir, coating each kernel with butter. Add in the white wine and let it simmer off.
5. Turn heat down to low and begin alternately adding in stock and farro cooking liquid, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring continuously with each addition. Let the liquid get absorbed by the farro before adding more. This should take 25-30 minutes. After the last addition, stir until about 1/2 of the liquid has been absorbed and then add in mushrooms and squash.
6. Fold 2 cups of parmesan and stir until just melted. Fold in creme fraiche and season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with remaining parmesan.