Sunday, May 26, 2013

Farro Salad
My Attempt to Re-Create
a Fun and Tasty Lunch at Uno's
 
 
This past March, I got together with my four best friends from college for our Winter Getaway.  Our first stop was to shop at the outlets.  Not long after we bought a few things, we became parched and hungry.  Off to Uno's we went! 
 
My friend Margo recommended we all try their Farro Salad.  I had never heard of farro, but I was immediately hooked.  I loved the curious chew in each bite. 

According to Wikipedia, the exact definition of farro is debated.  Farro is grown in Italy, and it is sometimes confused with barley.  In the U.S., we can buy "common wheat berries" if we want to make this dish.

I found wheat berries at Whole Foods.  I bought them in the bulk food section which was a bargain.  I hate having to buy a huge bag of something...then lose my enthusiasm...then I feel guilty if I don't use it all. 
 
Uno describes their salad as "fantastically healthy for you."  Turns out, for a 1/4 cup serving, you get 6 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein, and it also has iron and folic acid. 
 
In my endless effort to eat healthfully, I made this wheat berry salad this morning.  It's chilling now.  I'm thinking about adding some feta cheese to round it out.  The Uno's version has cucumber in it.  I think I'll add that too, but I'll do so closer to when I'm going to eat it.  I don't want it to get watery.

I got the recipe from Giada DeLaurentis on the Food Network which is linked below.  It's very tasty!  Now if I could only re-create Uno's amazing Bloody Mary, that would be great!