creamy mushroom farro
a recipe for a vegetarian autumnal farrotto served with caper sauce, sautéed mushrooms, toasted walnuts and fresh herbs
Vegetarian farrotto served with caper sauce, sautéed mushrooms, toasted walnuts and fresh herbs recipe
Serve: 6
Ingredients:
Base
400g farro
600g mushrooms
6g red chilli (1 piece)
70g shallots (2 bulbs)
5 garlic cloves
60g spinach
10g fresh parsley
15g chives
50g light-bodied red wine such as Pinot Noir
1,4l vegetable stock
50g double cream
5g honey
extra virgin olive oil
fine sea salt
black pepper
Caper sauce
20g parsley
15g chives
50g capers
5g lemon peel (from half a lemon)
3g lemon juice
1 garlic clove
100g yoghurt
80g double cream
fine sea salt
black pepper
Toppings
200g mushrooms
2 stalks of parsley
2 stalks of wild fennel
10g walnuts
extra virgin olive oil
fine sea salt
flaky sea salt
black pepper
Method:
Caper sauce
Remove the longer and thicker stems from the parsley. Don’t throw away the stems - you can freeze them and add them to a stock later!
Place the herbs (parsley and chives), capers, a garlic clove, yoghurt and double cream in a food processor. Grate half a lemon over the ingredients and then squeeze a bit of lemon juice. Blitz until smooth. Season with salt and black pepper. Set aside.
Prep ingredients for farrotto
If you purchased a mix of different mushrooms, select about 600g of the ones you plan to add to your farro, setting aside the nicer-looking ones for a topping.
Cut the soily bottoms off with a knife and rinse the mushrooms. Lay them out on a clean towel to dry. Tear or slice the mushrooms into bite-sized pieces, as shown below.
Finely slice 1 red chilli. Brunoise 2 shallots and mince 5 garlic cloves. Cut the spinach stems off and discard them. Finely slice parsley and chives.
Toppings
Place the walnuts in a ziplock bag, lay it flat and gently crush them with a rolling pin. I prefer leaving mine still quite chunky.
Heat a pan over medium heat and add the walnuts, toasting them on a dry surface for about 4 minutes, stirring often, until golden brown but not burnt. Toasting enhances their flavour and gives them a crispier texture. Once done, season the nuts with salt.
Pick unbruised parsley leaves and wild fennel and put the herbs in icy water to keep them fresh.
Take the mushrooms saved for the topping and trim off the soily bottoms. Rinse them under cold water, then dry thoroughly on a kitchen towel or use a salad spinner.
Heat a splash of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the cleaned mushrooms, cooking them until golden brown as shown below. If a side still sticks to the pan, let it cook a little longer - it likely means the mushroom isn’t fully coloured yet.
Cooking farrotto
Heat olive oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until they turn translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and chilli, letting them cook for about 5 minutes, and season with salt. Add the farro and combine with other ingredients.
Pour in the red wine, stir, and cook until the wine has evaporated. Drizzle in the honey, and season with salt and black pepper. Add a third of the stock and mix. Once the farro has absorbed the liquid, pour in another third and stir again.
Check if your farro is tender. If it needs more cooking, add the remaining stock. Finally, toss in the spinach leaves, parsley, and chives, and cook for another couple of minutes. Adjust the seasoning to taste before serving.
Serving
Warm up the farrotto and the mushroom topping. Spoon a portion into a bowl, followed by a dollop of caper sauce. Top with sauteéd mushrooms, toasted walnuts, and a sprinkle of fresh herbs. Finish with a pinch of flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
