Farro Salad with Roasted Vegetables

This has become one of our go to dinners. We absolutely love it! If you can't find farro, you can substitute kamut berries.

Inspired by these recipes at 101 cookbooks and at the kitchn.

Notes: Other vegetables work well too. I've added mushrooms and radicchio (add to the other vegetables about 10 minutes before done cooking) before and used butternut squash instead of cherry tomatoes. Thyme is a good substitution for the rosemary. Almonds can sub for the walnuts. If you can find farro for a decent price, I highly recommend it. 

1 pound farro or kamut berries (could substitute barley or wheat berries, but wouldn't be quite the same texture)

4 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 pound of carrots (about 6 small), chopped small

2 large red onions, chopped small

3 garlic cloves, minced

Rosemary, crushed dried (about a tablespoon dried or double that fresh)

1 cup toasted walnut pieces

Olive oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Salt and Pepper

Cook the farro or kamut berries in boiling water (3 cups water for every cup of berries) until softer, but with some texture retained. It takes about 25 minutes for semi-pearled farro and  about 45 minutes to an hour or more for un-pearled farro or kamut berries. They should be similar to al dente pasta. Drain off any excess water.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 F. Combine the vegetables, rosemary and garlic in a bowl with olive oil (2-4 tablespoons), about 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper. Spread them evenly on two baking sheets and roast for 20-30 minutes, until soft and the cherry tomatoes have browned to your liking. Stir the vegetables and rotate the baking sheets halfway through to ensure even cooking.

Once everything is cooked, combine the draind kamut berries, roasted vegetables and toasted walnuts in a large bowl. Add additional olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy warm, at room temperature or cold. My  favorite is warm, but it's good any way!