Roasted Farro and Kale

I know it looks like I've been heavy on the grains lately, but only the rice and lentils were white rice.  I had brown rice with the chicken, and farro here.  Whole grains have a low glycemic index, are on the Mediterranean diet, and are generally good for you.

I really debated what to call this.  Kale and farro, farro and kale... Neither one is likely to get all that many views.  We're going with it this way, even though the main flavor that comes through is from the tomato and garlic confit dressing.

I had really hoped my home-grown lacinato kale would be the star here.  It kind of stalled in the cooler weather, and the other two seedlings haven't had time to make up the difference.  I had two servings, at most, on the plant and reluctantly bought a bundle to make up the rest.  Maybe next month.

The one on the left is home grown. Big surprise.

If you're doing this as a one-pot meal, it's going to take over 2 hours.  What I should have done was make the confit the day before and let it mature in the fridge.  The farro bakes in under an hour.  Since you're using two different oven temperatures, they have to be made separately.

1 dry pint grape or cherry tomatoes
*1 head garlic
1 tsp kosher salt
*sprig fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
1/2 C olive oil
2 bunches lacinato kale
1 C dry farro
1 C boiling water

1.  Preheat oven to 375º.  In a 2 or 3 quart casserole, preferably with a lid, strew tomatoes.  Peel garlic cloves and distribute.  Sprinkle with salt, add thyme, and pour oil all over.  Cover and roast until tomatoes are done, 60 to 90 minutes depending on what kind of tomatoes you used.  Set aside.  Can be made up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerated.

2.  Lower oven to 325º.  Strip leaves from kale stems and give a coarse chop.  If using the same casserole, pour confit into a glass or porcelain container for the duration.  You don't need to rinse out the oil.  Pour farro into the bottom of the casserole and top with the kale.  Pour boiling water in, cover, and roast until the farro is done and most of the water is gone.  Start checking after half an hour.  If you had especially juicy kale and there's too much water at the bottom, strain out the excess.

3.  Add in confit and toss everything together.  Serve hot, or chilled as a cooked salad.  If not vegan, you can sprinkle with feta or chevre as a garnish.  If not vegetarian, a side of fish or chicken works.

Difficulty rating  :-0