Farro Risotto with Butternut Squash, Cremini Mushrooms & Sage

Tonight was risotto night. It has been awhile since I made one, and I guess I had the hankering to just stand at the stove stirring. It is somewhat therapeutic I suppose, but it's not something I do often. Tonight I used farro in place of your traditional arborio rice that is typically used in risotto. farro (as it is called in Italy) is a form of wheat that is similar to spelt. It has a rich and nutty flavor that I think pairs very nicely with mushrooms. You can easily make a risotto from farro using the same technique as used with arborio rice, although there is less starchiness in farro so it has a slightly less gelatinous texture than arborio rice. The biggest difference however, is that it has a "bite" to it, or is chewier because of the density of the grain. I personally like this texture, but not everyone does, so it is something to be aware of if you are serving for company. The great benefit of using farro is that it is more nutritious than arborio rice which is basically the same as white rice, nutritionally speaking: void of much in the way of vitamins and minerals, fiber. Farro is unrefined and a whole grain, therefore it has all of the vitamins, minerals (B vitamins, calcium and iron to be specific), fiber and protein in tact. Because of that, the digestion of farro will cause less of a spike in blood sugar than arborio rice, and is filling and digested slowly. 

In tonight's risotto, I added a nice blend of diced butternut squash, cremini mushrooms, onion, garlic, fresh sage, dried basil, and finished it with sundried tomatoes and parsley.