Hello! Finally, I am back and I have a brand new recipe to share – an amazingly delicious salad recipe! It feels like it’s been forever since I last posted a food-related post. July and August have been incredibly busy. But I promise, this salad will make up for my absence. *hehe*
This salad showcases the sweet, fresh nectarines (or peaches) that are currently in season. The sweetness is mildly tamed by the saltiness of the soy sauce, the spiciness of the chili-garlic sauce, the bitterness of the arugula and the sourness (is that a word?) of the fresh lime juice. It’s bright and fresh tasting! The farro adds a really wonderful texture to the salad.
Farro, if you’ve never tried it, tastes somewhat nutty and is very chewy. It works perfectly with this salad and absorbs a lot of the delicious dressing. Farro is an ancient grain that is also a low-gluten grain. It’s not appropriate for our celiac friends, but it can be easier to digest for those with gluten-intolerance due to its low gluten content. [Source] It is also very high in fibre and has more protein per cup than quinoa or brown rice. [Source] Farro is also very filling, so this salad could easily be enjoyed as a highly nutritious lunch or light dinner. To the salad, I added a handful of cashews to bump up the protein value even more. But you could easily substitute the cashews with peanuts, almonds or even some fresh edamame beans.
Hope you are all having a terrific week! My week has been pretty quiet this far – which is really welcomed after a very busy weekend. This past weekend, we spent a lot of time with good friends and family. On Friday, Jesse and I met some friends and we attended a 1-hour dance class in honour of our lovely friend Stephanie’s birthday. We learned the Waltz and the Jive. It was a great time and we even did pretty well learning the Waltz. The Jive…however…was not my strong point. *hah* I’d need coordination for that! :) After our dance class, we went to watch Pirates of the Caribbean out in the park. It was really cool – the movie was projected onto a huge screen out in the park. We lounged on picnic blankets and shared snacks brought by my lovely friend Sheila. Saturday, I attended a bachelorette party for my friend Caitlin. Sunday, we attended a fun baby shower for our friends Glen + Mandie. And we ended the weekend with finally seeing the new Batman movie! I really enjoyed it, but it was too long! *hah* I have a very low attention span…
What was I saying again…? *hehe*
Ingredients
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of farro, well-rinsed
- 2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon of hot chili-garlic sauce
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of soy sauce
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of sugar
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons of canola oil
- 2 fresh nectarines or peaches, sliced
- 1 sweet red pepper; diced
- 1 sweet yellow pepper; diced
- 2 cups of fresh arugula or spinach
- 2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh mint or cilantro
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1 cup of cashews (optional)
Method
1. In a medium saucepan, bring 2 cups of lightly salted water to a boil. Make sure the farro is well rinsed then add to the boiling water. Simmer farro until tender, but slightly chewy (approx. 15 minutes). Drain and rinse under cold water. Place in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the lime juice, rice vinegar, chili- garlic sauce, soy sauce, sugar and salt until the sugar is dissolved. Whisk in oil.
3. Cut nectarines (or peaches) and peppers into 3/4 inch (2 cm) pieces. Add fruit and peppers to the farro. Toss and then add the green onions, arugula or spinach, mint and cashews (if using).
4. Drizzle the salad with as much dressing as needed to coat. Toss well to combine.
Yield: 6 servings
Source: adapted from Foodland Ontario via Winnipeg Free Press
A Year Ago: S’more Pie
whoa girl! you DID have a busy weekend, but it sounds super fun! glad your week has been a bit relaxing ;)
and this salad looks delicious! i love the sweet and spicy combo! and it reminds me i need to start taking advantage of the peaches and nectarines in season ;)
Yep! One more busy weekend coming up and then I have two full months to relax and catch up on cooking and blogging! :) I could not be more happy to have some time to experiment in the kitchen during the fall months.
I loved the nectarines in this salad. I think next time i’ll try it with fresh peaches. The nectarines were great with the spicy chili-garlic sauce and sour lime juice. Yum!!!!
so pretty! I love all of the colors and of course anything asian inspired. Sound like you guys had quite a fun weekend!
Delicious!
Hooray for ancient grains! I love the peach and pepper combination in this salad. :)
Did you even have to to breathe – what a crazy yet amazing weekend!
And this salad – what a way to come back to blogging, so amazing…I have been totally craving farro and you jst inspired me!
This salad sounds amazing, and I love the Asian flair – I’ve been wanting to make a dinner salad recipe using stone fruit, and this sounds perfect!
Also, I’m with you on the long movies – I can’t sit in a theatre seat for that long without a break! And I’ve always thought the jive looked so fun when I see them do it on So You Think You Can Dance, but I imagine it would be hard to learn!
What a great looking salad! Love the peaches in there.
And forget the jive – the lindy hop is where it’s at!
lol, i have a short attention span as well, i hate long movies! this looks awesome, i just love the peaches in here!
This looks fantastic! Nectarines, bell peppers, cashews and FARRO! I adore that grain! This is definitely going on the “Must Make” List.
Looks delicious! And I love the photograph!
Ooh, I think I just found my lunch for the week! I’m picky about my salads but I LOVE ones with fruit in them.
that looks so amazing! i love the nectarines!!
Sounds like you’ve been having an amazing summer! I love all the combinations of flavours in this salad, and how healthy it is!
I have never cook with farro before and love to cook with a delicious farro dish like yours one day :D
Delicious recipe, Courtney. This salad is definitely light and so summery :)
Hello,
Just tucking into a bowl of your Sweet and Spicy Thai Farro Salad now. It’s really different. I used quinoa but will try it again with Farro. I was just wondering how do you think this would be with peanut and maybe sesame oil instead of the Canola? I thought it could make it even more Asian tasting but maybe that would be too many flavours? I have a habit of sometimes putting too many spices and sauces. Anyway, thanks for the recipe, very creative, love it!