farro cannellini salad

bob loves farro more than ani, so is frequently suggesting it as an answer to her question "What do you want for dinner?" and sometimes she does not veto the idea. Grain bowls are great nutritionally and when used properly can also help trim unwanted weight which this week bob is determined to attempt after a return from a culinary adventure in Copenhagen and Holland still at his maximum weight in several decades, having recovered from a surprising sudden weight loss after his bout with COVID but then overshot the mark a few years later. Gone temproarily are the days of eating to excess and not incorporating it into a weight gain it seems. Where are those good genes and overactive metabolism now?

Cannellini beans have the same status in our kitchen (bob vs ani). This time bob decided to combine them with farro for the first time. Being a lazy internet searcher, it only took looking at the top two hits to be convinced that both were speaking to him for different reasons, so a merging was called for. The lemon tahini dressing was a high selling point, given our Armenian Lebanese kitchen influences, plus ani is big on pistachios. The other had arugula and artichoke hearts which are usually available in our fridge, and then because we are addicted to avocados, we tossed in the remaining half avocado left over from the previous night's salad. The pistacchos add a nice bit of crunch to this dish. Ani's favorite nut.

The original tahini lemon dressing had a tablespoon of maple syrup. Ani objected. Bob said (in his head only) but maybe the maple syrup balances out the taste like that bit of sugar often added to an Italian tomato pasta sauce, and went with the whole tablespoon. A mistake. That bit of sweetness is obvious in the result so if there is ever a next time, the maple syrup is 86'd. Ani was right. Bob was wrong. Combining recipes was also frowned upon by chemist Ani who favors following protocol.

ingredients

hot grain
1/2 c farro
1 veggie broth cube
cold addins
1 can cannellini beans
1 c diced cucumbers
1 c diced tomatoes
1/4 c diced red onion
1/2 c red pepper, chopped
1/2 c artichoke hearts, chopped
1/4 c shelled pistachios
1/4 c chopped fresh mint
1/2 avocado, diced (optional)
1 handful arugula whatever that means to you
dressing
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
2T tahini
3 T lemon juice (1/2 normal sized lemon)
1/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1 t dried oregano

instructions

  1. Cook the farro with the veggie cube. Our package said 2/3 c water for 1/2  farro for about 7 minutes.
  2. Drain and cool the farro in the fridge.
  3. Meanwhile do the veggie prep chapping and dump altogether with the beans in a large bowl.
  4. When ready mix all the dressing ingredients together and serve.

notes

  1.  Merging two online recipes, inserting some of the first into the second:
     Always Scratch blog: https://alwaysfromscratch.com/summer-farro-salad/
    The Whole Scoop blog: https://thewholescoopblog.com/white-bean-and-farro-salad-with-lemon-tahini-dressing/
  2. 86 47 got former FBI director James Comey in big trouble with Trump and his fascist regime. Hmm.
  3. If you don't like tahini, you can subsitute our usual simple Sark salad dressing: olive or avocado oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, pressed garlic, optional Aleppo red pepper, all to taste.
  4. Illustrations available.
farrocannellinisalad.htm: 1-may-2026 [what, ME cook? © 1984 dr bob enterprises]