Farro with Stewed Collard Greens with Grilled Sausages and Grilled Bread

Farro is a grain that is a lot like barley, in fact if you can't find farro in the store barley will work just fine. It is high in fiber, high in protein and low in fat. And like rice at little bit cooks up to feed the whole family. It has an excellent nutty flavor that makes it a bang of flavor for your buck.

Collard greens are members of the cabbage family, but tend to be more bitter. That bitterness will decrease as the greens cook. Collard greens are an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium and folic acid. They are also low in fat and calories. And unlike spinach let's say, collards really hold their body and don't shrink down to nothing.

Equipment: Large dutch oven (similar to a Le Creuset) and a grill pan.

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil -- $0.15
1 medium onion - small dice -- $0.65                                                                      
3 garlic cloves - sliced thin -- $0.10  
1 1/2 cups farro - rinsed under water -- $2.30
1 large bunch collard greens - remove stems, rough chopped (about 6 cups) -- $2.50
1/2  cup white wine -- $1.00
2 1/2 cups chicken stock  -- $2.00
2 tbsp butter -- $0.40
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese - grated -- $0.75
4-5 of your favorite raw Italian sausages -- $3.95
1/2 loaf of french bread  -- $0.75
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                                               $14.55

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in dutch oven on medium heat, add diced onion and saute until translucent about 5 minutes. Add sliced garlic and saute for an additional minute. Add collard greens, farro, wine and chicken stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, stir, and then reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook for 1 hour on med-low heat.

While farro is cooking heat a grill pan without any oil. Brush sausages with 1 tbsp oil and when grill pan is very hot grill sausages until cooked. Remove from grill pan and let sausages cool. Slice baguette and grill bread (crust side up) on the same grill pan, but turn the heat down to medium. The bread will soak up the oil and the juices from the sausages. Grill bread to your likeness, be careful not to burn. Once sausages have cooled slice them into 1 in rounds.

After an hour the farro should be cooked and have no bite to the grain and the collards should be soft but not falling apart. Remove from the heat and stir in butter, Pecorino and sausages.

Serve with grilled bread.

Makes 4 large portions

How to modify for:
Vegetarians: Replace chicken stock with vegetable stock and take out sausages. Replace with roasted wild mushrooms, such as king trumpets or mitakies.
Vegans: Replace chicken stock with vegetable stock, take out sausages, butter and Pecorino. Replace with roasted wild mushrooms, such as king trumpets or mitakies.
Pescatarians: Replace chicken stock with vegetable stock and take out sausages. Replace sausages with firm, white fish such as Halibut. Grill each side and finish in 375* oven for 8-10 minutes.
Lactose Intolerance: Just remove the butter. Pecorino is a sheep's milk cheese and does not contain lactose.
Gluten Intolerance: Unfortunately farro contains gluten as it is a grain. Use a grain like arborio or carnaroli rice and make this dish more like a risotto. Follow the steps on the bag for cooking advice. And omit the grilled bread.