Farro Pesto White Bean Salad (July Salad a Day Challenge Day 3)

Buckle up your seatbelts, folks, because for today’s recipe, we’re taking a trip to the Mediterranean to enjoy this Farro Pesto White Bean Salad!

This salad is the perfect recipe to have in your back pocket in the summer heat, as it requires no oven and minimal cooking. The only cooking that is required is for the farro, and maybe the white beans if you’re cooking those from scratch. From there, all that’s left to do is chop up some bell pepper, cucumber, Kalamata olives, and red onion, and whip up your pesto.

The pesto is decidedly untraditional in the best way. Hemp, nutritional yeast, sun-dried tomato, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and parsley (or basil, if it’s already in season where you are!) come together to create a fresh tasting, healthy pesto that’s bursting with flavour- no cheese necessary! Clients at work are always shocked to hear that you can make pesto without pine nuts, and if you are one of those people, rejoice in knowing that pesto can be made with any number of nuts and seeds. These include hemp, walnuts, almonds, cashews, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds!

Once you cook the farro, this salad comes together fast. It’s excellent for busy weeknights or workday lunches, as well as being a great pack-along picnic salad.

Farro Pesto White Bean Salad (Vegan)

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• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 6 1x

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Description

A healthy heat wave meal, this Farro Pesto White Bean Salad will have you feeling sweet Mediterranean seaside vibes thanks to a bright vegan pesto made with hemp and sun-dried tomatoes.

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Ingredients

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For the salad:

• 1 cup farro, rinsed and drained
• 1½ cups cooked white beans (i.e. cannellini)
• 1 medium bell pepper, diced
• 1 small cucumber, diced
• ½ medium red onion, diced
• ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives, chopped in half lengthwise
• 1 medium tomato, diced

For the Sun-Dried Tomato, Parsley, and Hemp Pesto:

• ½ cup hemp hearts
• ¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
• ¼–½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• Pepper to taste
• 2 very firmly packed cups fresh parsley, stems included
• ½ cup filtered water

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Instructions

1. To cook the farro, place 3 cups of water in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Add the farro and turn down heat to low. Cover the pot with the lid and cook as you would rice, until the farro is chewy and the water has been absorbed. (If the farro is cooked but water remains, simply drain the remaining water and set the farro aside to cool).
2. Place the cooked farro in a large bowl and allow it to cool fully. Once cool, add the white beans, bell pepper, cucumber, olives, and tomato to the bowl.
3. To make the pesto, place all pesto ingredients except water in a food processor fitted with the 'S' blade. Start blending, then gradually add the water in a steady stream through the upper tube. Continue blending until completely smooth, tasting for salt, tanginess, and body, and adding additional sea salt, lemon juice, olive oil, or nutritional yeast to suit your taste.
4. To assemble the salad, spoon about ⅔ of the pesto over the farro, bean, and vegetable mixture. Toss to coat, then add more pesto as desired.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Category: Dinner, Lunch
• Cuisine: Mediterranean, Vegan

This salad pairs beautifully with kombucha, an ice cold beer, or this beet/apple/carrot number from Greenhouse Juice in the photo.

If you make the salad, let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment below. I’m trying to figure out how to add a recipe rating option on to my comments section, so I hope to roll that out soon to make it easier for you to leave feedback. Also, don’t forget to tag me @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen on Instagram. I love seeing your takes on my recipes.

Talk to you tomorrow! <3