Farro Spelt Soup all'Umbra
Umbria (Sibillini mountains area)
Umbria's ancient grain soup: farro spelt (triticum dicoccum, the specific emmer wheat grown on the Sibillini slopes) simmered with borlotti beans, celery, carrot, onion, garlic, sage, and rosemary in pork broth until the farro grains partially break open and thicken the broth into a dense, unified porridge. The Umbrian tradition of farro dates to pre-Roman times — it was the staple of the legions and of the hill-town kitchens of the Apennine interior. The final texture should be thick enough that a spoon leaves a track on the surface.