GIALINA'S KALE & FARRO SALAD WITH AVOCADO

Gialina's Kale & Farro Salad with Avocado image

Our neighborhood pizzeria, Gialina, gets high marks for its thin-crust pies and the impeccable produce that chef-owner Sharon Ardiana uses in her toppings and sides. Her salads are always irresistible, and this one is not only delicious, it also uses whole kale leaves, including the stems. Ardiana tosses chopped raw kale with bright rounds of sweet carrots, creamy avocado, and a handful of nutty farro for sweetness and texture, and then adds a garlic dressing that is reminiscent of green goddess dressing but without the mayonnaise. Note: Ardiana's favorite vinegar, and mine too, is Moscatel vinegar made by the Spanish brand Unio. It's spendy but complex and fruity. Look for it online or at Whole Foods or specialty stores, or substitute Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar. You only need half to two-thirds of the dressing for this recipe; leftovers will hold for about a week in the refrigerator.

Provided by @MakeItYours

Number Of Ingredients 13

Ingredients

1 stalk green garlic, white and light green parts, chopped, or 2 cloves garlic, chopped
Leaves from 1/2 bunch tarragon
Leaves from 1/2 bunch Italian parsley
1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup Moscatel vinegar (see Note)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2/3 cup farro
1 bunch Tuscan kale (about 10 ounces)
1 to 2 avocados, cut into large dice
2 spring carrots, peeled or scrubbed and sliced into thin rounds
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Steps:

Preparation To make the dressing, place all of the dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth, or use an immersion blender to blend all the ingredients in a bowl.
To make the salad, bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Add the farro and cook until tender, 16 to 18 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water until cool, then drain well.
Remove the stems from the kale. Cut away any tough ends, then finely slice the stems and tear the kale leaves into small bite-size pieces. Place both the stems and leaves in a large salad bowl. Add the avocados, carrots, and farro. Add half of the dressing and toss to combine. Add more dressing if desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Prep TipTo remove stems from chard or kale, start by trimming the stem ends. Then hold a leaf by the stem in one hand and use the other hand to tear the leaves from the stem into bite-size pieces. To make cleaner-looking stems, use a knife to cut the leaves from the stem on both sides in a pointy triangle.
/nReprinted with permission from Root to Stalk Cooking by Tara Duggan, © 2013 Ten Speed Press /n
/nTARA DUGGAN is a staff writer for The San Francisco Chronicle's Food & Wine section and the author of three previous cookbooks, including The Blue Bottle Craft of Coffee and The Working Cook. A graduate of the California Culinary Academy, she is the recipient of a James Beard Foundation Journalism Award. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Denver Post, The Chicago Tribune, and The Toronto Star. Tara, her husband, and their two daughters live in San Francisco and enjoy spending time on her family's off-the-grid farm in Northern California, where she gets her ideas for what to do with all kinds of kitchen scraps.