Hardy Farro Minestrone ~ A Great Winter Dish!

This is a lovely winter dish, hardy, easy to make and sure to warm you up on a cold day! Minestrone is usually made with pasta. Making it with farro, an ancient Italian wheat version, makes for a hardier and very tasty version! Farro Minestrone

Ingredients:

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of dry farro
  • 1 leeks, diced
  • 2 large carrots, diced
  • 2 celery ribs, diced
  • 1 small bunch of kale, stripped of stems and chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, pressed
  • 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 1 jar/can of tomatoes (15 oz)
  • Vegetable stock or bouillon
  • 1 can of beans of your choice (I used cannellini beans in this version) drained and rinsed(15 oz)
  • Salt
  • Fresh herbs of your choice: cilantro, parsley, marjoram, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano
  • Red pepper flakes
  • Zest of 1-2 lemons
  • Fresh ground parmesan (optional)

Preparation:

Pre-cooked Farro

  1. Pre-cook farro. Because the grain takes a while to cook, you will want to pre-cook it, otherwise all the veggies will turn into mush by the time the grain is done. You can do this at any time, today I did it in the morning while talking to my sister on the phone: In a medium sauce pan combine farro with 3 cups of water. Cook for 30 minutes (not until done!), drain, set aside.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large pot and leeks, carrots, celery, and garlic and saute for 10 minutes at low temperature.
  3. Add stock or bouillon, 4-5 cups, add more liquid if soup needs thinning
  4. Add chopped herbs and red pepper flakes
  5. Add farro, tomatoes and beans, simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes
  6. Add kale and lemon zest, simmer for 2 more minutes
  7. Season with salt if needed
  8. Add grated parmesan if desired.

    Bon Appetite!