Farro with Radicchio and Parmesan makes for a terrific vegetarian side dish or main course.
I originally created this as a pasta topping, which I also recommend making with a nice thick ribbon pasta like pappardelle. However, this dish works equally well with Farro or Orzo. Today’s recipe is with Farro.
Arliano Update (Aggiornamento Arliano):
We are nearing the finish line of being able to move back upstairs! The electrician (photo, below) has completed 95% of his work and will finish the rest when he returns to work on the little apartment below our house where we’ve been living during the renovation for the past 10 months. Little things remain like separating the bathroom light and fan switches and wiggling in a forgotten internet cable between floors.
The new spiral staircase that arrived in more pieces than an IKEA nightmare is taking more than a week to install (the workers hate us for this particular project but are secretly thankful they get to work inside instead of the 37F/3C temperatures and rain outside). We recently discovered that the staircase store shorted us 12 poles for the handrails — either that or the workers don’t understand how to install it with the given pieces. That’s not going to be fun to deal with the store. However, it’s not like Tom and I are kicking up our feet and sipping cocktails while they work — Don’t we wish! Instead, we have to go pick up over 600 pounds of tile from the store (my aching back!) and soon will come our arduous task of deep cleaning post-renovation before we can move in.
___________________________
Did you enjoy reading or making the recipe from this post? If so, please consider giving it a “like” or a comment. It would be nice to know you are out there and that my posts connect with you.
Farro with Radicchio and Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups pearled farro
- 1 very large or 2 regular sized globe radicchio, finely shredded
- 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan or Grana Padano cheese
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 – 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt (not iodized table salt), more to taste
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon ground red chili pepper
- 1 teaspoon sugar (Radicchio by nature is bitter. If you want to tame it, include the sugar. If not, don’t)
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, hazelnuts, or almonds as topping (alternatively you could use well toasted and lightly crushed croutons)
Directions
- Prepare the farro according to package directions (this typically takes between 20 – 40 minutes), drain any excess liquid, and let cool until just warm
- While the farro is simmering away, place the olive oil and shredded radicchio in a medium sauté pan along with the salt, red pepper chili powder, and sugar and stir. Cook over medium heat until the radicchio wilts and begins to brown. Add the minced garlic in the last minute of cooking the radicchio. Remove from the heat and transfer the radicchio to a sieve to drain any excess liquid
- Grate the cheese and set it aside
- When the farro is done cooking and drained, place it in a large mixing bowl. Add the cooked radicchio and cheese and mix well. Adjust for salt and ground red chili pepper as needed. Place in a serving bowl and sprinkle the chopped nuts or croutons over the top
Greg Nelson Cooks 
I love the bitterness of radicchio, but I’ve never cooked it before. Delicious!
LikeLiked by 1 person