I have a question for you - are mini pumpkins edible? I’ve been toying with the idea of cooking them up in this pilaf but didn’t want to mess up a good dish just in case it wasn’t edible.
This dish was inspired by an end cap display at Whole Foods - one of their new seasonal items included a boxed pumpkin sage farro pilaf. It sounded yummy but I wanted to try making it from scratch, so here it is.
If you’ve never had farro before, it’s slightly chewy and nutty - a cross between barley and brown rice. I had our Nanny try some and she loved it! Since i also like to find shortcuts in the kitchen, I bought the quick cooking farro at Trader Joes. If you have the regular kind, you could just soak it with hot water for an hour or two before cooking and it would work just as well.
This dish would be a yummy and different side dish for Thanksgiving. Totally unexpected since pumpkin usually shows up during dessert, and totally hearty for everyone to enjoy with the bird. I made this the other day and paired with green beans and garlic dijon grilled pork in our meal prep video. Have you seen it yet? If not i’ll link it here.
Enjoy and if you make this recipe, be sure to tag me on instagram at @honeysuckle
Pumpkin Farro Pilaf
1 cup quick cooking farro
1 cup sugar pumpkin, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 cup portobello mushrooms, minced
1 medium onion
2 cups chicken broth
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS
In a large skillet, add olive oil and onion. Saute for 5-7 minutes on medium low heat until slightly browned and caramelized
And pumpkin, mushrooms, smoked paprika, and garlic. Continue sauteeing for 5 minutes until mushrooms have softened.
Add farro, sage, and 2 cups chicken broth (veggie broth if vegan). Simmer on medium low heat for 15 minutes until liquid has soaked through farro. Turn off and cover with lid. Let it steam for another 10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fluff with fork, top with parmesan cheese and more sage.
