By Week 473. Year 10. Tommy is 42. A quiet spring week. Work, school, dinner. The ordinary machinery of a family that has been running for 10 years of documented life and longer before that. The food was simple — shrimp and grits — and the simple was enough and the enough was everything.
Made shrimp and grits this week — the kind of food that fills the house with the smell of Louisiana and the knowledge that whoever walks through the door is walking into a home where the stove is on and the food is ready and the welcome is unconditional. The meal was the day. The day was the meal. Both were good. Laissez les bons temps rouler.
Shrimp and grits carried the week — that much is true — but spring dinners around here rarely stop at one dish, and what I kept reaching for on the side was something that felt as steady and grounded as the week itself felt: a great grain salad, bright and filling, the kind of thing you make a big bowl of and watch disappear. It’s not a flashy recipe. It doesn’t need to be. After 473 weeks of feeding this family, I know that the dishes that earn their place on the table aren’t the complicated ones — they’re the ones that taste like you meant it.
Great Grain Salad
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 40 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups farro (or wheat berries), rinsed
- 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 English cucumber, diced
- 1/3 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, torn
- 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1/4 cup toasted sunflower seeds or pepitas
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the farro. Combine farro and vegetable broth in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20–25 minutes until grains are tender but still chewy. Drain any excess liquid and spread on a baking sheet to cool for 10 minutes.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, Dijon mustard, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Season with salt and black pepper. Set aside.
- Combine the grains. In a large mixing bowl, toss together the cooled farro and cooked quinoa until evenly mixed.
- Add the vegetables and herbs. Add cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, parsley, and mint to the grain mixture. Toss gently to distribute.
- Dress the salad. Pour dressing over the salad and toss well to coat every grain and vegetable. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt, pepper, or lemon juice as needed.
- Finish and serve. Top with crumbled feta and toasted seeds. Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled. The salad keeps well covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days — the flavors deepen overnight.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 10g | Fat: 12g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 6g | Sodium: 280mg