Bean and Farro Soup from Garfagnana Recipe – Giadzy

Name: Zuppa di Farro della Garfagnana (Bean and Farro Soup from Garfagnana)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 15 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 150 grams / about 1 cup farro; 150 grams / about 1 cup mixed dry beans (cannellini beans and borlotti beans); 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil + more for serving; ½ golden onion; ½ carrot; ½ celery stick; 1 bay leaf; 50 grams/ 1¾ oz pancetta, diced; 1 tablespoon tomato paste; 1.2 liters / 5 cups hot water; Fine sea salt; Freshly ground black pepper; 4 slices country bread, slightly toasted

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Farro has a lovely chewy texture, it’s nutty and hearty and makes a comforting, easy soup when paired with beans and some basic aromatics. Clean, simple flavors and ingredients don’t mean boring food, indeed, it is quite the opposite, and this soup is a great example.

To make a real farro soup from Garfagnana you'd need local varieties of beans such as scritto, bianco, and rosso of Garfagnana, which you can often buy in local hole-in-the-wall shops. However, as I made in this soup, you can successfully replace those beans with cannellini, borlotti, or cranberry beans. Opt for a variety of beans rather than just one kind of bean: this adds layers of flavors, textures, and colors that make every soup or stew more interesting.

Soaking the beans and farro together and simmering them gently and slowly creates an unbelievably creamy, thick soup.

Zuppa di Farro della Garfagnana (Bean and Farro Soup from Garfagnana)

Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users

Servings

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

2 hours

Ingredients

150 grams / about 1 cup farro
150 grams / about 1 cup mixed dry beans (cannellini beans and borlotti beans)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil + more for serving

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½ golden onion
½ carrot
½ celery stick
1 bay leaf

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50 grams/ 1¾ oz pancetta, diced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1.2 liters / 5 cups hot water
Fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 slices country bread, slightly toasted

Instructions

The night before, soak the farro and the beans in a bowl with plenty of water.
The next day, make the battuto: finely chop onion, carrot, and celery, and collect them in a medium thick-bottomed pot. Add the olive oil, the diced pancetta, a bay leaf, and a generous pinch of salt, and cook the aromatics on medium-low heat for 5 to 8 minutes, until softened.
When the battuto is soft and golden, add the well-drained farro and beans, mix thoroughly to mingle the flavors, then add the tomato paste and cover them with hot water.
Bring the soup to a boil on high heat, then reduce to the minimum and simmer, covered, for about one hour and a half, checking it from time to time to prevent it from drying up too quickly. The soup is ready when thick and creamy: farro will retain its characteristic chewy texture, but beans should be melt-in-your-mouth soft. There’s nothing worse than beans that are still al dente. Should they be still al dente, add more hot water - a ¼ cup increment per time - and cook the soup a little longer, until the beans are soft. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
Ladle the farro soup into four bowls, add the toasted bread, and drizzle each serving with some olive oil, sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper, and serve.