Monday, March 14, 2011

Farro Risotto with Rapini Recipe

Copyright 2011 by Cooking With the Single Guy

Ingredients:
1.5 cup farro
2-3 cups rapini, chopped
1/2 sweet onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup dry white wine
3-4 cups vegetable stock
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 T unsalted butter
2 T extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan or sauté pan, warm olive oil over medium high heat, then add onion and garlic. Saute until translucent, about two minutes. Add the farro and allow to toast for a few seconds, then add white wine and cook over medium until most of wine is evaporated. Start adding the vegetable stock a couple of ladles at a time, adding as the stock gets absorbed by the farro. The farro should take about 20 to 25 minutes to cook.

Half way through cooking the farro, add the rapini and allow it to wilt and cook. (Don’t add it too early or else the rapini will get really soggy.) Cook for another 10 minutes until farro is done. (Check by taking a bite and if farro taste soft and how you’d like it, then season with salt and pepper to taste. )

Remove pan from heat and add butter and cheese. Stir to mix well and then serve immediately. Garnish with more grated cheese. Serve with garlic bread or a small mixed salad.

Makes 2 to 3 servings.

Pair with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.

TIP: It’s still not easy finding farro. I buy mine at the Pasta Shop at the Rockridge Market Hall in Oakland, and it’s sold by the pound. It’s often sold dried. The fresher the farro, the shorter it’ll take to cook. You can find it at specialty Italian stores, or you can substitute it with wheat berries.

5 comments:

Hungry Dog said...

I adore farro! And rapini! And so I love the sound of this risotto. I see that you don't blanch the rapini before using it--does the bitterness subside with all the broth/butter/cheese?

Single Guy Ben said...

HD, that's actually a good suggestion. I forgot you made the same suggestion the last time I cooked with rapini! But you know, the overall farro had a slight bitterness with the rapini, but it wasn't so bad because of the cheese and butter. I'm so lazy, the idea of blanching and doing the whole boiling then setting in cold water seems like so much work. But I agree that it'll actually keep the rapini even more green when added to the farro instead of my olive colored rapini! ;-)

Carolyn Jung said...

So Italian looking! Mario would be proud of you. ;)

Anonymous said...

Love your site!

I notice in your farro recipe that you did not comment when the farro should be added.

Why did you use farro. Would you prefer to use rice or another starch.

Single Guy Ben said...

Ooops! I totally missed that! You should add the farro after the onions have been cooked to translucent, then allow the farro to toast for a few seconds. Then that's when you add the wine, and after that's absorbed you start with the broth. Ugh, can't believe I missed that. Thanks for catching it, and thanks for visiting my blog! (I'll fix the actual recipe once Blogger is done with its stupid tech problems.)