Name: Farro Risotto with Roasted Acorn Squash
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 cups dry farro; 2-3 tablespoons butter or olive oil; 4 tablespoons grated parmesan or pecorino; ½ cup veggie broth; 1 Acorn squash, sliced; 1 tablespoon olive oil; pinch salt, pepper and cayenne; 1 cup radish leaves packed ( or sub arugula or basil leaves); 2 cloves garlic; ⅓ cup olive oil; ¼ tsp salt; 1 ½ tsp lemon juice; ¼ cup Parmesan; ¼ cup toasted almonds

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Farro Risotto with Roasted Acorn Squash and flavorful Pesto – a delicious vegetarian dinner recipe, perfect for fall!

Farro Risotto with roasted acorn squash and falvorful Pesto- a delicious vegetarian main course, perfect for fall! #farrorisotto #farro #vegetariandinner #fallrecipes

This Farro Risotto is a beautiful celebration of fall. Topped with Roasted Acorn Squash and flavorful Pesto (made from radish tops or sub our arugula pesto) it is a flavorful cozy vegetarian meal we’ve all fallen in love with!

Acorn Squash is roasted in the oven with a little cayenne, then becomes the vessel for the savory farro risotto. The whole thing is topped off with my new favorite thing, radish-top pesto.

Such a brilliant use for radish tops! Mizuna leaves are strewn gracefully around the plate. It’s a simple, healthy and flavorful vegetarian dish, perfect for fall.

Chef Tony Brown, of Ruins and Stellas Cafe, in Spokane Washington | www.feastingathome.com

This delicious creation is from Tony Brown, chef and owner of two of Spokane’s hippest and tastiest restaurants, Stella’s Cafe and his latest venture, Ruins.

Tony’s style of food is seasonal, simple, unfussy – yet really creative and unique. Ruins offers small plates (but not too small) at reasonable prices. His menu changes every week, and I’ve never been disappointed.

How to make Farro Risotto

Roast the Acorn Squash. In his recipe, acorn squash is cut into ¾ inch rings, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with salt, pepper and cayenne, then roasted in the oven.

Prep the Farro. For the risotto, we are using farro instead of arborio rice.Farro, if unfamiliar, is an ancient grain, originating from the Fertile Crescent -has been found in the tombs of Egyptian kings. Italians have grown and cooked farro for many centuries, and now with the increasing interest in whole grains, farro’s popularity is finally gaining here as well.

It is locally grown in the Pacific Northwest by Lentz Farms. A great addition to salads and soups, it can be used in place of rice in most recipes. Much higher in nutrients and fiber than rice, farro is a wholesome grain worth trying.

Cook the farro in water until tender. In general, it takes 15 to 20 minutes for pearled farro, 20 to 30 minutes for semi-pearled farro and up to 45 minutes for whole farro.

Once the farro is tender, drain, and we’ll turn it into risotto by adding veggie broth, butter and pecorino cheese.

Make the Pesto ( or use store-bought).

This Pesto is made with combining radish tops (or arugula) almonds, olive oil, Parmesan, garlic and lemon. I love the use of radish top here! There is no other way to describe this other than, totally brilliant. You could put this on anything.

Make the risotto and assemble it!

Simmer the cooked farro with veggie broth, butter and pecorino cheese season to taste. Then assemble the plates.

The roasted acorn squash is filled with the farro risotto, then topped with the radish top pesto and the flavors work well together. Mizuna leaves are strewn around the plate.

Farro Risotto with roasted acorn squash and Radish Top Pesto- a delicious vegetarian main course, perfect for fall! #farrorisotto #farro #vegetariandinner #fallrecipes

A pretty fall plate.

Enjoy Tony’s recipe for Farro Risotto!

More Risotto Recipes you may like:

Mushroom Risotto with Frizzled Leeks

Butternut Risotto with Leeks

Tomato Risotto with Saffron

The Easiest Instant Pot Risotto Recipe

Farro Risotto with Roasted Acorn Squash

★★★★★ 5 from 1 review

Author: Sylvia Fountaine | Feasting at Home Blog
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 60 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yield: 4 1x
Category: vegetarian Main
Method: stove top
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian

Print Recipe

Description

Farro Risotto with roasted acorn squash and Radish Top Pesto- a delicious vegetarian main course, perfect for fall! Sub arugula for the radish tops if need be!

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 400 F
Slice acorn squash, into 4 rings, ¾ inch thick, remove seeds. Brush sides with olive oil, Sprinkle with salt, pepper and a dash of cayenne, and bake on a parchement-lined baking sheet for 25-30 minutes, until fork tender.
Place farro in a medium pot and cover with an 2 inches of water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover, and simmer on low until tender. Drain. (Allow 15- 20 minutes for pearled farro, 20 to 30 minutes for semi-pearled farro and up to 45 minutes for whole farro.) If overcooked, soak in ice-cold water to stop the cooking process.
Make the radish top pesto -pulse all ingredients -radish tops or arugula, garlic, oil, salt, lemon juice, Parmesan and toasted almonds– in a food processor until combined ( don’t blend too smooth, leave a little granular).
Make the risotto. Once the farro is tender and drained, add it back into the pot, add the butter, stock and simmer over medium heat, until warmed through, add cheese, stir, and adjust salt and pepper to taste. For a looser consistency, add more broth as needed.
To assemble, place an acorn squash ring on a plate, fill with risotto, top with the pesto, and scatter bitter greens around the plate. Enjoy!

Notes

The pesto can be made ahead and the farro can cooked ahead.

Nutrition

Serving Size:
Calories: 576
Sugar: 1.4 g
Sodium: 463.5 mg
Fat: 32 g
Saturated Fat: 5.6 g
Carbohydrates: 18 g
Fiber: 2.9 g
Protein: 7.6 g
Cholesterol: 7.2 mg

Keywords: farro risotto, farro recipes, farro risotto recipes

Comments

Anonymous says:

September 8, 2020 at 7:27 am

Turned out delicious!

★★★★★

Reply
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says:

November 12, 2014 at 6:23 am

This is such a neat way to top squash!! Loooooving that risotto!!

Reply
1. Sylvia Fountaine says:
  
  November 14, 2014 at 4:22 pm
  
  I agree, Tony’s recipe is really amazing. Have a great weekend Katrina!
  
  Reply
Carol at Wild Goose Tea says:

November 12, 2014 at 12:20 am

Very impressive. Nice intro to the whole deal with the picture of the wonderful turquoise door.Isn’t it amazing too how much presentation enhances the excitement about the dish.

Reply
1. Sylvia Fountaine says:
  
  November 14, 2014 at 4:21 pm
  
  Yes, I love the blue door…and the food coming out here is delicious!
  
  Reply