Local Addictions

Any organization that gives away local sugar pumpkins as a door gift is fine by me. And if that’s not enough, Seattle Tilth also teaches kids and adults about organic gardening, hosts classes on how to raise city chickens, and helps refugees turn their farming skills into a living. I am thrilled that Seattle Tilth is part of my community.

I am also thrilled with the sugar pumpkin they gave me.

As part of my post-Halloween, jelly candy overdose, I wanted to make something full of vegetables. And to use my pumpkin. After much cookbook perusing, I chose to tweak Suzanne Goin’s recipe for Farro with Kabocha Squash and Cavalo Nero from Sunday Suppers at Luques. I made some substitutions and omissions, not because I thought it was a particularly good idea, but that’s what I had in the house.

And oh my goodness, this was a yummy one. I cook with kale (cavalo nero) a lot, and I have never done to kale what Goin suggested I do. I cooked the heck out of it and it was amazing. I may very well become addicted to it.

Seattle Tilth does so much for me and the greater Seattle area. Including help me feed my addictions.

Farro with Pumpkin and Kale
Adapted from Farro with Kabocha Squash and Cavalo Nero, Sunday Suppers at Luques, Suzanne Goin

3 cups fresh sugar pumpkin, peeled and diced
¾ cup olive oil
1 T plus 2 t dried thyme
1 # lacinato kale
1 sprig fresh rosemary
2 chilies de arbol
1 cup sliced onion plus ½ onion cut into wedges
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 ½ cups farro
¼ cup red wine
½ cup shallot, sliced
Kosher salt and pepper

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil with lots of salt.
• Toss the pumpkin with 2 T olive oil, 1 t thyme, ¾ t salt and some pepper. Spread on a cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes, until soft.
• Blanch the kale in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain and squeeze out the extra water.
• Heat ¼ cup oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the rosemary sprig and one of the chilies, crumbled. Cook for about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the sliced onion and ½ t salt, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the sliced garlic. Cook for about 7 more minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to brown.
• Add the kale plus 2 T oil, and stir to coat the kale with oil and onions. Add ½ t salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes, until the kale is a little crispy and almost black. Remove the rosemary and the chili.
• While the kale is cooking, heat a medium sauce pan for 2 minutes, add ¼ cup oil, the onion wedges, the remaining chili crumbled, and the bay leaf. Cook for about 5 minutes until the onion is soft. Add the farro, 1 T thyme, and 2 t salt, and stir. Add the wine and 6 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until the farro is tender. Drain and remove the vegetables, bay leaf and chili.
• Heat a large frying pan for 2 minutes, add 2 T oil, ½ t salt and the sliced shallots. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add the kale mixture, the pumpkin and the farro and cook until everything is heated through. Serve immediately or keep it warm in the oven.