Farro Salad with mint, basil, pistachios, arugula, and other good things

Here's another recipe with fresh mint that I made recently. I also got to use fresh basil from the garden. This salad was delicious the first day. It lost a bit of its appeal on the second and third days, but still very enjoyable. I'd been looking for a recipe for trying out farro, which I'd never cooked before, and this convinces me to use it again.  And arugula too--how could I resist.  I was first introduced to arugula in France, where it has the very apt name of roquette. At that time, it was not available in markets, so I grew my own for many years, a satisfying crop as it comes in readily, and, if planted early enough, will give a second crop in the fall.  Now that it's readily available in the grocery store, I buy it there, and am happy to be able to use it all year long.

CHARLIE BIRD'S FARRO SALAD

adapted from https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015843-charlie-birds-farro-salad

6 servings (as substantial side dish)

1 cup farro, pearled (if unpearled, longer cooking time)

3 cups water

2 bay leaves

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 c Parmesan cheese, shaved with a vegetable peeler and chopped

1/2 c. chopped pistachio nuts 

2 cups arugula leaves (cut a bit if large leaves)

1 cup parsley or basil leaves, chopped

1 cup mint leaves, chopped

¾ cup halved cherry tomatoes

⅓ cup radish, chopped

add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1.     In a medium saucepan, bring farro, bay leaves and water to a simmer. Simmer until farro is tender and liquid evaporates, about 30 minutes. If all the liquid evaporates before the farro is done, add a little more water. Let farro cool, then discard bay leaves. Put in the refrigerator until about an hour or so before you're ready to mix up salad (to bring it up to room temperature).

2.     In a small glass jar, shake together the olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Mix together in a large bowl the farro, cheese, pistachio nuts, arugula, herbs, tomatoes, and radish. Pour the dressing over and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Chicken larb with peanuts

Here's another great dish served in a leaf as a wrap--here a cabbage leaf rather than lettuce. I was dubious, but the cabbage worked well, adding some crunch as well as flavor. I have a large stand of mint in my garden, so in the summer I'm always on the lookout for a recipe that uses fresh mint--this is a keeper! It's also quite easy to put together; the only thing that is cooked is the ground chicken or turkey. A Cuisinart speeded up the significant amount of chopping.

CHICKEN LARB WITH PEANUTS

adapted from https://www.splendidtable.org/recipes/chicken-larb-with-georgia-peanuts

serves 5-6

1 lb ground chicken or turkey (I used turkey)

2 cups cold water, more if needed

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh ginger

2 cups fresh mint leaves, chopped (a little less is fine)

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

4 Thai red chiles, or to taste, seeded and finely chopped (I used one large jalapeno and 1 large banana pepper)

3 carrots, grated

3/4 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, chopped

2 shallots, very thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)

3 green onions, chopped

juice of 2 limes

3 T. fish sauce

1 head cabbage, cored, leaves separated

1.     Place the chicken or turkey in a medium saucepan. Add cold water to cover (about 2 cups). Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook gently, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon while it cooks, until the meat is opaque, 5-7 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain well, letting it cool slightly.

2.     Mix together in a large bowl everything from the ginger through the green onions. (I've put the list in an order that makes sense for multi-tasking with the Cuisinart.) Mix in the drained meat.

3.     Mix together the lime juice and fish sauce. Pour over the veggies/meat and mix up well.

4.     To serve, put a spoonful of the larb in a cabbage leaf and fold the leaf like a taco to eat.