Farro with Tomatoes, Cannellini Beans & Pesto

How was our vacation already more than a month ago? Is it me or does life always seem a bit easier, a bit lighter when it’s spent at the beach? Maybe it’s because I don’t live at the beach so every time I am there life really is, just that, a vacation :)

I’ll come back from my tangent now. So last month Chris & I ate at a cute little spot in the Isle of Palms it also had my maiden name (Pesce) in the name so we had to try it. We walked into Coda del Pesce (which if you’re practicing your Italian means 'tail of the fish') on a Sunday night. When we asked to see the menu the server said they didn’t have one for Sunday nights. Yep, that’s right, Sunday nights were reserved to family styled meals of whatever the chef felt like cooking.  We thought it over for about 3 minutes & knew right then we needed to roll the dice on the 5 course meal we were promised. Isn’t one of the best parts of eating with your family just eating what’s there & not having to make any decisions? Well it is for me.

The smiley server said 5 courses but we definitely had more dishes than that on our table & each one was just as delicious as the last.  One of the first dishes we had was an antipasta dish that was a simple combination of fresh pesto & beans. I’m sure there was something else in there - maybe a potato but the beans & the pesto are what really stood out to us. Chris loved it. I loved it. Weeks after we’ve returned I’m still thinking & talking about it, maybe even drooling a little bit. Taking a nod from this great antipasta dish I made a simple supper with the same kind of cannellini beans & pesto but I added some tomatoes & farro. It’s a great weeknight meal or just a great one if you feel like going meatless.

PS: Happy birthday to my sister-in-law, Eileen! I love you!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried farro
• 1/3 cup pesto (you can use your favorite, I made this one ), separated in half to use for two different times in this recipe
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 (15-16 oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed & drained
• 1/2 cup chicken or veggie stock (or just water if you don’t have any stocks on hand)
• 1 large shallot, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt
• pepper
• freshly grated romano cheese - as much or as little as you like

Make it!

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (at least 4 cups of water).  Add a good amount of salt (a tablespoon or two) to season the farro like you would pasta.
2. Add the farro & let cook for 20 minutes.
3. In the meantime, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
4. Add the shallot & cook until softened, about 3-5 minutes.
5. Add the garlic & tomatoes. Season with salt & pepper.
6. Cook at a low heat so the garlic doesn’t burn until the tomatoes start to get a little wrinkled.
7. Add the beans, chicken stock & half the pesto. Stir gently to combine.
8. Cook until the liquid has reduced by half.
9. Taste the farro after about 20 minutes it should be al dente, with a little chew to it.
10. Drain the water out of the faro.
11. Mix cooked farro with the tomato & bean mixture along with the rest of the pesto. Top with some grated cheese. Serve warm or at room temperature.