Farro Salad With Roasted Rutabaga, Ricotta Salata and Hazelnuts

- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1½pounds rutabaga, peeled and cut into ¾-inch pieces
- 5tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
- 1tablespoon maple syrup
- ¾teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1½cups farro
- 2tablespoons finely chopped shallot
- 2teaspoons red wine vinegar, more for drizzling
- 1fat garlic clove, minced
- ½cup crumbled ricotta salata or feta cheese
- ½cup toasted, chopped hazelnuts
- 2bunches watercress or arugula, cleaned and trimmed
Preparation
- Step 1
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss rutabaga with 2 tablespoons oil, the maple syrup, ½ teaspoon salt and black pepper to taste. Spread out on a baking sheet and roast, stirring once or twice, until rutabaga is very tender and browned, 30 to 40 minutes.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add farro. Cook until tender, checking often. This can take from 20 minutes to an hour, depending upon type of farro used. Add more water if necessary.
- Step 3
In a large bowl, whisk together the shallot, vinegar, garlic and ¼ teaspoon salt. Whisk in 3 tablespoons olive oil and some pepper.
- Step 4
Drain farro well and add to bowl along with rutabaga, tossing everything well. Let cool slightly (it can still be warm but not hot), then mix in the cheese and hazelnuts. Taste and add more salt, pepper and olive oil if necessary.
- Step 5
In another bowl, drizzle watercress or arugula with a little oil and vinegar and toss well. Serve farro on a bed of watercress.
Private Notes
Comments
Roasted 2 carrots since the rutabaga was only 1 lb. One cup farro seemed to be enough. At the end, added 1/2 c. corn along with the feta and hazelnuts. Served on arugula with browned slices of chicken brauts for a garnish. Excellent.
I am not a rutabaga fan - tried it roasted and mashed and in soups. But we got 2 huge rutabagas in the CSA and I decided to give this a try. WOW. I'm glad my roots were over 1.5 lb b/c I ate several handfuls while waiting for the farro to finish. The dressing with the farro, feta and rutabaga is amazing. I used pecans b/c that's what I had and added some chopped dates as suggested below. The acid/salty/sweet mix is perfect. Served over arugula. Will definitely make again!
Good with Port Roast w fennel etc
4 years later and I am still loving this recipe. Yes if you use waxed rutabagas that have been sitting on the shelf from the previous fall they will take a longtime to roast. My suggestion is to cut them into 1/2” pieces rather than 3/4”. Once they become caramelized you will have a delicious salad.
"Splendid salad!", said my spouse. I agreed. Made as the recipe was written but scaled back by 50% for 3 servings. Thoughts for next time: I may decrease the farro by a little. Or not. I agree with others who suggest a little sweet compliment might work here. For bright, tart-sweet and chewy texture, I might try sultanas to add a few to the top of each serving. Or not. Pretty perfect as it is.
Melissa Clark has a lot of recipes for farro salads, and they are always nicely balanced in flavors and textures. This one is not going to make me a rutabaga lover, however.
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