Beet Farro-It’s Cold Outside

If you read cookbooks from 40 years ago, you’ll notice they have one thing in common: the food is often unappealing. The desserts are probably fine: carrot cake and apple pie haven’t changed. But in general, the recipes are-not unexpectedly- dated.

In his giant New York Times Cookbook, Craig Claiborne tackles Chinese food, turning out a chapter of sad stir fries. I’ve been skimming James Beard’s Theory & Practice of Good Cooking, and the recipes seem fine, but leave you with a nagging feeling that something is a little off. His sautéed burger looks acceptable. But when you read the headnote, and his prescription for how to avoid burgers from sticking to the grill-slip an ice chip in the center-you start to worry. If I wanted a watery burger, I’d eat it in the shower.

Not that Beard does a lot of sautéing. Like a lot of cooks back then, the broiler is near and dear to his heart. We like it for last minute browning and cooking thin items. It also cuts down on dirty pans. However, Beard’s broiler is a central facet of his kitchen, down to the broiled scallops. Sticking a scallop under the broiler doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense. Unless you hold them in your palm an inch away from the blazing heat, they won’t brown well. Scallops need a hot pan and about 2 minutes on each side.

He cooks gnocchi with a cup of instant farina rather than flour, a mixture which, if I had an Italian grandma, would probably give her a stroke. Of course, most of the recipes contain massive quantities of butter. Especially the vegetables. Braised fennel 5 tablespoons butter; braised celery 4 tablespoons butter; braised lettuce 4 tablespoons butter.

Forty years ago, we wouldn’t have posted (printed) this farro recipe. Farro and other grains are relatively new here, there’s no butter just olive oil, and the beets are folded into the farro rather than being a side dish. It calls for just 2 or 3 main ingredients, but it’s of the times, when, ironically, we’ve learned that, often, simpler is best.

Beet Farro

Serves 4

3 medium beets

¼ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons minced shallots

1 cup farro

2-3 cups chicken stock

2 tablespoons thinly sliced scallions, white and light green parts only

salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400. Wrap beets tightly in foil and roast until tender, 1 to 1 ½ hours. Remove and when cool, peel the skin and chop. Puree in a blender or food processor with 1 cup of the stock. Reserve.
2. Warm the 2 tablespoons of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and sweat until translucent with no color. Add the farro and mix well, coating with the oil and cooking until it smells nutty, 3-4 minutes.
3. Fold in the beet mixture until incorporated. Bring to a simmer and cover, lowering heat a bit and stirring occasionally so the beets don’t scorch.
4. The farro will take about 25 minutes. After 10 or so minutes it may appear dry in which case add stock along the way. The end result should be slightly thicker than risotto but still pourable.
5. Divide the farro among the plates, garnish with scallions and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil.