Tuscany
A thick, warming soup from the Garfagnana hills using farro della Garfagnana (emmer wheat with IGP status) — cooked with borlotti beans, vegetables and a ham bone in a single pot until the farro is tender and the beans have partially collapsed into the broth. The soup is finished with a drizzle of Garfagnana olive oil and left to rest before serving, allowing the farro to swell further.
Earthy, nutty and deeply savoury from the ham bone; farro's chew contrasts with soft beans; olive oil enriches the finish — a soup of mountain simplicity and time
{"Use Farro della Garfagnana IGP (pearled emmer wheat) — unpearled farro needs pre-soaking and longer cooking","Cook dried borlotti beans separately until just tender before combining with farro — they have different cooking times","A ham hock (or pig's trotter) cooked in the soup from the start gives essential collagen and smoky depth","The soup should rest 15–20 minutes off heat before serving — farro continues to absorb and thickens further","Adjust consistency with bean broth (from cooking the beans separately) rather than water — this preserves flavour"}
{"Reserve some whole cooked beans and stir in at the end for textural contrast against the softened farro","A Parmigiano rind in the broth during the final 30 minutes of cooking adds umami depth","This soup is excellent cold the next day, sliced from a bowl (it sets firm) and drizzled with olive oil"}
{"Combining uncooked farro and uncooked beans — they have different cooking times and one will be wrong","Serving immediately — the resting period is where the soup finds its final consistency","Using pearl barley instead of farro — the flavour is different and the Garfagnana terroir is lost"}
La Cucina della Garfagnana — Farro, Castagne e Funghi