A Holiday Farro Salad
Thank you to my sweet aunt for making this farro salad at our family Thanksgiving a few years ago. She used the recipe here, which is a slight adaption to Heidi’s original recipe in her cookbook, and then further adapted it to make it vegan and to use holiday ingredients like hazelnuts and cranberries.
I’ve used my aunt’s version but reduced the olive oil to half the original amount (and altered the water amount used to cook the farro). We aren’t used to using oil in our cooking so this version tastes best to us! But if you enjoy it regularly you may want to double the amount listed below.
I hope you enjoy this salad and any variation you make with it over time! I love the textures and flavors and look forward to making it every fall. The red and green could look nice on a Christmas table too.
x Jessie
A HOLIDAY FARRO SALAD
Serves 8 as a side.
Serves 4 as a meal, simply add cubed extra firm tofu and diced avocado to each portion.
1 ¼ cups whole farro
2 1/2 cups water
1 cup green olives, coarsely chopped
1 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
3 green onions, roughly chopped
1/3 cup dried cranberries
large pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
large pinch of sea salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
Add the farro and the water to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Let cook until farro is soft and plump, about 20 to 25 minutes, then drain the excess water from the pot and place the farro in a large serving bowl.
Add the olives, hazelnuts, green onions, dried cranberries, crushed red pepper flakes, parsley, and sea salt to the farro and lightly toss.
Place the lemon juice, honey, and olive oil in a small jar, seal with a lid, and shake well.
Pour the dressing over the farro salad and toss until evenly coated.
Serve right away (see serving sizes above for a meal idea too).
If needing to store leftovers, place in an airtight container and serve the dressed salad within a day or two. This can keep all week if you hold off from dressing the salad at once and instead do so as you are ready to enjoy.