American

Toasted Farro & Antipasto Salad

by:
March 18, 2020
5
6 Ratings
Photo by Ty Mecham. Food stylist: Anna Billingskog. Prop stylist: Megan Hedgpeth.
  • Prep time 10 minutes
  • Cook time 25 minutes
  • Serves 4 to 6
Author Notes

This sheet-pan dinner is essentially an antipasto platter turned into a hearty, meal-worthy salad, with a few smart tricks up its sleeve. To start, combine farro (either freshly cooked or leftover) with chopped artichoke hearts, castelvetrano olives, and thinly sliced salami, then dress it in a tangy, red wine-anchovy vinaigrette. If you served it at this point, it would make a very fine salad. But don’t stop there! Spread the freshly-tossed salad out on a half sheet pan and slide it under the broiler. The whole thing gets warm, toasty, and even more delicious— the farro gets a little crackly and chewy, the salami browned and crispy, the vinaigrette deeper in flavor. Before serving, toss in halved cherry tomatoes (marinated in a small amount of the vinaigrette to enhance their flavor and juiciness), provolone, and a few handfuls of peppery arugula for added brightness. The finished salad is a big jumble of flavors, colors, and textures, with each bite as interesting as the next.

A few tips and notes: This salad practically begs for improvisation, so feel free to try different briny mix-ins, like pepperoncini, different types of olives, or pickled vegetables. Also try different grains, such as barley, freekeh, or quinoa (or a mixture). And the salad can easily be made vegetarian by omitting the anchovies from the vinaigrette, and swapping the salami for another favorite ingredient (marinated mushrooms or sun-dried tomatoes would be nice for the umami boost). —EmilyC

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Ingredients
  • For the salad:
  • 1 1/4 cups uncooked semi-pearled farro
  • 1 pinch kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • 1 pinch red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
  • 2/3 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 pinch granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts (unmarinated or marinated), drained and roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup pitted castelvetrano olives, torn or roughly chopped
  • 1 1/2 ounces salami, very thinly sliced, then roughly chopped (fennel salami or calabrese works well)
  • 1 cup (packed) baby arugula
  • 2 ounces provolone, thinly sliced or cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)
  • For the red wine-anchovy vinaigrette:
  • 4 anchovy fillets, minced and smashed into a paste (or substitute 2 teaspoons of anchovy paste)
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon lightly crushed fennel seeds (an equal amount of dried oregano can be substituted)
  • 1 pinch sea salt, plus more to taste
  • 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
  1. Cook farro in a large pot of boiled salted water, skimming the surface a few times, until tender, 15 to 20 minutes, or according to package instructions. Drain. (Note: Use this time to make the vinaigrette and prep the rest of your ingredients.)
  2. To make the vinaigrette: Combine anchovies, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, crushed fennel seeds, and a pinch of sea salt in a small bowl or jar with a tight fitting lid, then add the olive oil, whisking (or shaking) to emulsify. Taste and adjust the acid and seasoning.
  3. Season cherry tomatoes with salt and a pinch of sugar, then add 1 tablespoon of the vinaigrette. Toss and let marinate (they’ll be added to the salad in Step 6).
  4. Return the warm farro back to the empty pot, and toss with 3 tablespoons vinaigrette, then stir in artichoke hearts, castelvetrano olives, and salami. (Make sure to separate pieces of salami if they’re stuck together.) Add salt to taste, and a pinch or two of red pepper flakes if your salami isn’t spicy. Spread the farro salad in an even, single layer on a half sheet pan (ungreased and unlined).
  5. Heat the broiler with an oven rack about 4 to 5 inches from the heating element. Broil the salad for 2 minutes. Stir, spread out, and broil for 2 more minutes. Repeat until farro is lightly toasted and salami is starting to brown and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Remove from the oven.
  6. Immediately toss in tomatoes and their vinaigrette to warm them. Let cool for a minute or two, then toss in arugula and provolone, and a little more vinaigrette if needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

Recipe by: EmilyC

I'm a home cook. I love salads. Two things you'll always find in my refrigerator are lemons and butter, and in my pantry good quality chocolate and the makings for chocolate chip cookies.

8 Reviews

Stephanie April 28, 2020
Modified a little (no anchovies), subbed parm for the provolone (no provolone in the house) - was utterly delicious! Thank you!
EmilyC April 29, 2020
Thanks so much for trying it and circling back, Stephanie! Glad you enjoyed it!
NXL April 21, 2020
Excellent, flavorful recipe. As some suggested, I added one finely diced pepperoncini. This is a new favorite for us.
EmilyC April 22, 2020
Wonderful, so happy you liked it -- thanks for your note!
Kathryn R. April 2, 2020
Excellent!! No farro at the grocery store so I used bulgar instead. My husband loved the quick clean up too. Keep these recipes coming Food52!
EmilyC April 2, 2020
So happy this hit the spot, Kathryn! Thanks for trying it!
Heather A. March 31, 2020
This was fabulous! One of the most well-balanced dishes I've had in a long time, flavor-wise. We agreed after dinner that it's now on our household's top-five list of main-dish salads. We added four or five chopped large pepperoncinis (a delightful addition) and found that they were spicy enough that we didn't need to add any crushed red pepper to the mix.
EmilyC March 31, 2020
So glad you liked this Heather! Pepperoncini is a great addition. Thanks so much for trying it and circling back!