Farro and roasted pepper salad

Whenever I find myself in a cooking rut, I seek inspiration from cookbooks. I find myself sitting cross-legged on the living room floor encircled by cookbooks, dog-earing pages and jotting notes down in my moleskine.

Plenty, by Yotam Ottolenghi, is one of the first cookbooks I grab. The way he flavors food is always surprising and delicious. When I saw this salad, I knew I had to try it. He had me at the dressing, which is spiked with allspice, smoked paprika, and a mixture of dry and fresh herbs. I added in chickpeas to make it a bit heartier, so it leaves you satisfied for hours.

You can roast your own red bell peppers like I did or skip a step and use store-bought instead. Serve the salad over a large bed of mixed greens. This is a quick and easy dinner, one that would please a crowd. And the leftovers make an excellent lunch.

Farro and roasted pepper salad
Adapted from Plenty
1/2 c farro
1 c water
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp fresh thyme
2 tbsp dill
2 tbsp parsley
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp honey
2 tbsp walnut oil
1/4 tsp sea salt

2 roasted red bell peppers
1 can chickpeas

Put the farro and 1 cup of water in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes (or until tender). Once it's finished cooking, pour through a sieve, and rinse with cool water. Set aside.

Mix onions, spices, lemon juice, honey, walnut oil, and salt in a large bowl. Add the roasted peppers, chickpeas, and farro. Mix well.

Garnish with feta and another dusting of herbs.