Farro with White Beans and Chard

Yield: 4 side servings

This recipe is simple, healthy, and sophisticated. I find farro at my local health food market. Farro cooks like pasta, so bring your broth to a boil before adding the grains. Kale works as a good substitute for chard in this recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup farro
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 bunch swiss chard or rainbow chard
• 1 15-ounce can white beans (I like cannellini beans), rinsed and drained
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Add the farro and return to a rolling boil. Cook like pasta, for about 35-40 minutes. It will remain chewy when cooked. Drain farro and reserve 1 cup vegetable stock.
2. Remove the stems from the chard and chop the leaves into thin, bite-size strips.
3. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add chard and saute for about 5 minutes, or until chard begins to wilt.
4. To the chard, add 1 cup reserved vegetable stock, white beans, cooked farro, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper (to taste). Let mixture simmer for about 10 minutes over low heat. Add additional seasoning to taste.