Savory Farro Cake Recipes

TORTA SALATA DI FARRO - SAVORY FARRO PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 370 degrees F (180 C).
• Prepare the farro: Wash it well, picking out impurities such as bits of chaff, pebbles, or bad grains. In a medium saucepan, combine the farro with about 4 cups water and 2 teaspoons salt, then turn heat to high and bring it all to a boil.
• When it has come to a boil, reduce the temperature to medium low, cover, and let simmer until the farro is tender, about 30 minutes.
• Remove from heat, drain mixture well, then pour it all into a large ceramic or porcelain bowl and set aside to let cool.
• When cooled, combine it with the remaining ingredients except the butter and the bread crumbs.
• Use the butter and bread crumbs to lightly grease and coat a 9-inch pan, pour the farro mixture into it, and bake it in a 370 F (180C) oven for about 40 minutes.
• This will work well as a second course, with a tossed salad.
• Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis' method of cooking farro and from a recipe in Luciano Migliolli's "Il Farro e le sue Ricette." Farro: Grain of the Legions Grano Farro has a long and glorious history - it is the original grain from which all others derive, and fed the Mediterranean and Near Eastern populations for thousands of years; somewhat more recently it was the standard ration of the Roman Legions that expanded throughout the Western World. Ground into a paste and cooked, it was also the primary ingredient in plus, the polenta eaten for centuries by the Roman poor.

SAVORY FARRO TART

Steps:

• Cook farro in a 2- to 3-quart pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 10 minutes; drain in a sieve and cool to room temperature.
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Butter dish and lightly coat with bread crumbs, knocking out excess.
• Melt butter (2 tablespoons) in a small heavy skillet over low heat and cook garlic, stirring, 1 minute, then transfer to a medium bowl. Stir in farro, ricotta, whole egg, yolks, Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley, salt, pepper, and nutmeg until combined well. Spoon mixture into dish and bake until just set and top is pale golden, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool to warm on a rack. Cut into wedges and serve.
• *Available at farawayfoods.com.