Serves a Crowd

Warm Farro and Mustard Green Salad with Maple-Roasted Acorn Squash

by:
December 14, 2011
4.6
5 Ratings
Warm Farro and Mustard Green Salad with Maple-Roasted Acorn Squash
Photo by James Ransom
  • Serves 4 to 6
Author Notes

This salad contains a perfect balance of sweet and salty. Enjoy it as a meal, or serve it as a side.

Tip: If possible, soak the farro for a few hours to speed up the cooking process, then drain before you cook it. —Nicole Franzen

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: Nicole Franzen is a food and lifestyle photographer from Brooklyn, NY.
WHAT: A bitter farro salad, sweetened slightly by maple syrup and acorn squash.
HOW: Toss warm farro with mustard greens, lemon juice, and olive oil. Serve with maple-roasted acorn squash, feta cheese, and toasted walnuts.
WHY WE LOVE IT: This salad includes everything we want to eat in the fall, but it also translates well to any season -- the lemon brightens it for summer, while the combination of the warm farro with mustard greens makes it hearty enough for colder weather. If you want to bolster it further, trying adding root vegetables like beets or an additional protein, like salmon, on top. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 cups farro
  • Sea salt, to taste
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 acorn squash
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • Vegetable oil, to cook
  • Pepper, to taste
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more if needed
  • 1 bunch mustard greens
  • 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese, to serve
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted, to serve
Directions
  1. To cook the farro, place it in a saucepan with a sprinkle of sea salt, a bay leaf, and enough water to cover the farro completely. Cover the pan and bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender, 20 to 45 minutes, making sure to add water if needed.
  2. While the farro cooks, preheat the oven to 375º F. Slice the acorn squash in half, and discard any seeds and guts. Cut into 1/4-inch slices and place on a sheet pan. Add the maple syrup and a drizzle of vegetable oil. Toss well and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and bake until tender and lightly browned, about 30 to 45 minutes.
  3. For the dressing, whisk together the lemon juice with an equal amount of olive oil so that you have a half acid, half oil ratio. (This ratio allows for the citrus to stand out against the richness of the farro and the greens.) Season the dressing with salt and pepper, to taste. Dress the farro and mustard greens, toss well. Serve farro salad with the roasted acorn squash, feta cheese, and toasted walnuts on top. Nom!
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11 Reviews

Kevin B.
Kevin B. February 2, 2023
Directions on how to prep the mustard greens not included.
 
KayB
KayB December 13, 2021
Thanks for this lovely dinner salad. We added pan seared salmon and I had only turnip greens and spinich from the farmers mkt and so used that. It elevated our normal home dinner salads. Will try w/ mustard greens in future.
 
Suzanne
Suzanne December 13, 2021
Love salmon, this sounds delicious
 
mayfrates
mayfrates November 15, 2021
We loved this salad and it came together quickly since we had cooked farro on hand from the night before. It's pretty hands off, so although the squash takes a little while to cook, you can be doing other things. Sadly, I didn't have mustard greens on hand and my local grocery store didn't have them either. I subbed arugula which was fantastic, but can't wait to try it with mustard greens! This is going in the Fall/Winter salad rotation for sure.
 
Suzanne
Suzanne December 13, 2021
That sounds great! I will try it your way.
 
Sabine G.
Sabine G. January 14, 2020
TOP notch! I absolutely loved this combination! Will make this over and over again! So simple. Great for a weeknight meal that is filling and simple to prepare. I used swiss chard as we didnt have mustard greens in- and it was fab! Thank you for an excellent recipe!
 
Suzanne
Suzanne December 26, 2019
Excellent! I never had mustard greens before but love all the other ingredients so thought I would give it a try. Thinking the dressing would be to tart, I added some balsamic vinegar to lighten the lemony flavor. Wish I took a picture, it had rave reviews from quite a few people and I now have a new green to add to my menu. I will make the Cajun mustard green chips with the left over greens (I bought two huge bunches and only used 1)
 
Änneken
Änneken October 15, 2018
I had a couple of reservations about this salad (mustard greens only? Way too spicy. Lemon/oil ration..ugh, that's going to be so acidic!) but made it anyways as I had acorn squash, farro and mustard greens at home. Result: It's a great salad! Trust the author, I'd say...It's beautiful, the mustard greens mellowed out and the lemon vinaigrette is just right. I doubled up on the nuts though and I am glad I did. Loved it!
 
ezachos
ezachos September 2, 2017
I never see mustard greens in my usual grocery stores. Can you suggest alternatives (got it with the baby chard, though, thanks!)
 
Suzanne
Suzanne December 26, 2019
Arugula
 
mindia
mindia January 5, 2012
This was delicious! I subbed sliced almonds (for the walnuts) and baby chard (for the mustard greens) since that is what I had on hand, and it was great. But I'm sure the added punch from the mustard greens is probably pretty wonderful and will give that a go in the future. Thanks for sharing!