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 Farro, also known as emmer (Triticum dicoccum). Have you tried farro? It’s the hottest thing since mashed potatoes.
The new alternative to rice and spuds is finding its way onto menus all over town, as detailed in a recent article in the Chicago Sun-Times.
“Farro” is the Italian word for an ancestor of wheat. This ancient grain, also known as “emmer” (Triticum dicoccum), has a nutty mild flavor and a pleasantly chewy texture.
Local chefs using farro include:
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Chef Laura Piper of Trattoria No. 10 in the Loop. She uses farro in salads, topping it with shrimp or mixing in peaches and figs.
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Chef Paul Fehribach of Big Jones in Andersonville. He likens the texture of whole-grain farro to caviar: “It’s firm and then it pops and then it’s creamy.”
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Chef Serena Perdue of Niche in Geneva. She says farro’s earthiness makes it hold up well against strong flavors, such as blue cheese.
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Chef Tony Priolo of Piccolo Sogno in West Town. He makes risotto, pasta and beer with it.
 Mario DiPaolo, far right, stands in front of his iconic seasonal lemonade stand. (Photo by Leah A. Zeldes.) It might not be beach weather yet, but the first sign of summer has hit Chicago:
Mario’s Italian Lemonade in Little Italy has opened for the season.
Nothing says summer in Chicago like this seasonal stand, which has been bringing Windy City dwellers freshly made frozen lemonade since 1953.
 Freshii's “Kale Effect” bowl. Kale is the new “super green.” One serving of kale contains 5 percent of the recommended daily intake of fiber and 2 grams of protein. Proponents tout its anti-inflammatory properties, and say it has more iron than beef, more calcium than milk, boosts immunity, and is rich in Vitamins A and C. So eat your kale. This healthful “Kale Effect” bowl features kale, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, spinach and sesame seeds as well as peanut sauce over brown rice with chicken or tofu, $9.99, at Freshii in the Loop and other locations.
 How much will you pay for bread? Lisa Shames, dining editor for Chicago Social, doesn’t mind forking over up to $7 for a bread basket, according to her recent article in the Sun-Times. Indian restaurants have long charged by the piece for their handmade naans and parathas, but Western eateries typically have included bread in the price of the meal.
Now, Shames says, tony Chicago restaurants are charging a premium if you want bread with your meal. The breads, however, are special, she says, including:
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Crispy lavosh topped with pumpkin seeds and butterkase cheese, $4 at Allium on the Gold Coast.
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Basket of four house-made breads with spreads such as bagna cauda, $5 at Balena in Lincoln Park.
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Demi-Baguette, focaccia and mini-brioche made from house-milled flour and served with house-churned butter, $3 at Nellcote in the West Loop.
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“Unholy” challah with maple-bacon butter, a $7 weekend brunch item at Urban Union in Little Italy.
Will you pay extra for artisanal bread when dining out or just go back on the Atkins diet?
 Quinoa, front center, and other ingredients for Bombay Spice's lettuce wraps. What it is: Pronounced “KEEN-wah,” quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) is a tiny, grainlike food with a deliciously nutty flavor and a light, fluffy, slightly crunchy texture. It’s a complete protein and high in calcium, lysine, manganese, magnesium, folate, riboflavin and other healthful nutrients.
A member of the goosefoot family, quinoa is related to lamb’s quarters, and more distantly to spinach, chard and beets. It isn’t a true grain because it comes from a broadleaf plant. It’s ranked as a “pseudocereal,” along with buckwheat and amaranth.
Where it comes from: Quinoa is native to the Andes Mountains of Bolivia, Chile and Peru, and grows at 10,000 to 20,000 feet above sea level. It was a staple food crop for the Incas, and has been cultivated in Latin America for some 8,000 years, although the Spanish conquistadors tried to wipe it out in their efforts to vanquish Incan culture. It’s now grown in Colorado and Canada, but most quinoa sold in the U.S. comes from South America.
It became popular in the U.S. after two American students of Bolivian spiritual leader Oscar Ichazo, who believed quinoa was an aid to meditation, began to import and grow it in the 1980s.
 Sunil Kumar What to do with it: Quinoa can be used in just about every dish where you’d use rice.
“I was lucky that I’ve been cooking with quinoa, long before the ‘healthy trend’ started. I was excited to see that people were interested in it — so replacing rice with quinoa has been a popular substitution here at the restaurant,” says Chef Sunil Kumar of Bombay Spice in River North. As a spring special, Kumar mixed quinoa with tofu and spinach for a vegetarian lettuce wrap.
While most commercial quinoas have been processed to remove the bitter saponin that coats the seeds, it’s a good idea to give the seeds a rinse in a fine mesh strainer before cooking.
To cook 1/2 cup of quinoa, Kumar says, combine it with 3/4 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of oil and a pinch of salt. Bring the water and quinoa to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until quinoa is cooked (12 to 15 minutes). When finished, the seeds will exhibit a spiral showing the outer germ separating from the body.
For extra nutty flavor, toast quinoa by stirring over medium heat in a dry frying pan for a few minutes before cooking.
Bombay Spice’s quinoa and tofu lettuce wrap
Chef Sunil Kumar
1/4 cup cooking oil
8 ounces extra-firm tofu, diced
1 medium red onion, diced
1 green pepper, seeded and diced
3 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
7 to 8 grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
Handful of spinach leaves (about 25)
1 head iceberg lettuce
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; add the tofu and cook 2 to 3 minutes, until brown. Add the onion and green pepper and cook for another 2 minutes.
Stir in the sweet chili sauce, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, salt, grape tomatoes and cooked quinoa; cook for 1 minute. Add the spinach and mix all ingredients together. Serve in lettuce cups. 4 servings.
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Everyone’s invited to help Tim Sarrantonio celebrate his 30th birthday. The party takes place from 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday, April 29, at Goose Island Brewpub in Wrigleyville. Sarrantonio’s bash, modestly termed “The TimTacular,” will feature Goose Island beer, an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet, a tasting of Frontera Grill Chef Rick Bayless’s Goose Island collaboration beer Marisol and live entertainment from The Neo-Futurists, comedian Cameron Esposito, and local band Sexy Fights.
The event benefits The Neo-Futurists and Reading with Pictures, on whose boards Sarrantonio serves, as well as The Arts of Life and ARISE Chicago. A live auction features donations from Chef Stephanie Izard of Girl & the Goat in the West Loop, Atwood Cafe in the Loop, science-fiction author Neil Gaiman, Chicago’s Begyle Brewing and many more.
Tickets are $60 and include door prizes and special gifts to attendees. Email Sarrantonio at tsarran@gmail.com for more information or to wish him many happy returns.
Wine and Indian food? Yes!
The Eneri Access Series, with Indian Harvest Chef/Owner Sanjeev Pandey presents a dinner pairing wine and Indian fare at 5 p.m. Sunday, April 29, at the Naperville restaurant.
Colleen Taylor Sen, author “Curry: A Global History”  and other books, will speak on the history and changing attitudes towards wine and spirits in India, where even today several Indian states prohibit the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages. However, India’s tradition of making and consuming alcoholic drinks dates back to the Indus Valley civilization in the third millennium B.C. and continued through the introduction of scotch by the British. Today, though, urban Indians are increasingly attracted by wine, and consumption is growing 30 percent a year.
A six-course menu paired with a global selection of wines features at the event. The evening is $75, and reservations with credit card are required.
Here’s the menu:
- Vegetable samosa, green chaat salad, mixed kebab and tandoori shrimp with 2011 Matua Valley Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand
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Dry okra with spices, vegetable korma with 2010 Lindemans Bin 65 Chardonnay from Australia
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Atlantic salmon chennai with 2010 Hob Nob Pinot Noir from Languedoc-Roussillon, France
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Chicken makhni with 2010 Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling from Columbia Valley, Washington
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Lamb chop curry with 2008 Malbec Tierra Secreta from Mendoza, Argentina
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Fresh fruits, pista kulfi and gajar halva with Mionetto Prosecco Brut D.O.C. Treviso Sparkling Wine
 Big Bricks' baked goat cheese. Ah, spring. The time when ever-optimistic Cubs fans still have hope for the season.
Win or lose, you can celebrate with or take solace in free food this baseball season. Just show your Cubs ticket stub when you place your meal order and Wrigleyville’s Big Bricks (sibling to Bricks pizzeria in Lincoln Park) will throw in an appetizer on the house. Choose from items such as baked goat cheese, smoked shrimp and fried grits, or “Slutty Ravioli” (sausage-stuffed pasta blanketed in cheese).
Enjoy the spring, Cubs fans. You know you’ll be crying in your beer by season’s end.
 Peas (Photo by Anna Cervova). What it is: “English,” “garden” or “green” peas (Pisum sativum) are delectable, small, round, sweet vegetables that grow on vines inside inedible pods.
Today, only about 5 percent of peas are sold fresh; more than half are canned, and the rest are frozen. The flavors of these three preparations are much more pronounced than many other vegetables, and if you’ve never tried the fresh version, you owe yourself a springtime treat. Imported peas are in stores now, but locally grown fresh peas — the best! — are usually only available for a short time, typically from May through June.
 Jonathan Lane Where it comes from: Peas of various sorts have been eaten at least since the Bronze Age, and archeological evidence found in Hungary suggests they may be even older. Wild plants of related species in middle Asia, the Near East and Ethiopia, however, suggest they may have originally been cultivated there; no one has ever found a wild version of P. sativum.
Peas started out being grown for their dry seeds, but by the 12th century references to “green peas” appeared in England, and in the 16th century, detailed descriptions appeared.
The name “pea” comes to English from the Latin Pisum; originally “pease,” it began to sound like a plural and eventually contracted to “pea.” Most Americans use “peas” to mean fresh green peas while other types — cowpeas, blackeye peas, crowder peas, et al. — are described with adjectives to distinguish them. The proper name “English peas” arose due to extensive plant breeding in Great Britain.
What to do with it: Particularly if you buy them at farmers’ markets, fresh peas may come still in their pods, which are not edible, and must be removed before cooking (just pull the “string” down one side — although some people like to steam the peas in their pods and eat them by scraping the pods through their teeth). However, shelled peas are increasingly available in the spring. Use them promptly, because their delicate flavor dulls with long storage. Boil or steam just until crisp-tender. They’re delicious with just a bit of butter, but lend themselves to all kinds of seasonings, too.
Chef Jonathan Lane at Benny’s Chop House in River North combines fresh peas with mint, a classic pairing, and uses them as a filling for pasta.
Benny’s Chop House’s spring pea and mint tortelloni with ricotta salata
Chef Jonathan Lane
Pasta dough:
1 pound all-purpose flour
5 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon whole milk
Pea and mint filling:
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 cups fresh English peas, blanched and cooled
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
Salt and ground white pepper to taste
Grated ricotta salata and toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish
Make the pasta: Place flour on a work surface and create a circular well. In the center of the flour place 4 of the eggs, the yolks, oil and milk. With a fork, slowly incorporate the flour into the wet mix until completely incorporated.
Work the pasta dough with the heel of your palm until the dough is smooth and shiny.
Prepare the filling: Combine the ricotta cheese, peas and mint and mix until all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Season with salt and white pepper.
In a pasta machine, roll the pasta dough to 1/16 inch, starting at the widest setting and gradually making it thinner, or roll out with a rolling pin. Cut the dough into 2-by-2-inch squares. Place a spoonful of the pea filling into the center of the square of pasta. Beat the last egg with a tablespoon of water, and spread a light coating of egg wash on the outer edges of the pasta.
Take 1 end of the pasta square and fold over to the end to make a triangle. Take the two wing points and twist together to make the tortelloni.
Once all tortellonis are made, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Drop pasta into water and allow the pasta to cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Fresh pasta cooks very quickly
Remove and drain the pasta. Place onto the plates and garnish with ricotta salata and toasted pumpkin seeds. 6 servings.
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 Terry and Dirk Fucik Sample the delights of freshwater fish with
Slow Food Chicago at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, in a “Taste of the Great Lakes” dinner at Dirk’s Fish & Gourmet Shop on the Clybourn Corridor.
Fishmongers Dirk and Terry Fucik celebrate the bounty of the Great Lakes and present a family-style dinner featuring local fish as well as invasive species: smoked rainbow trout wraps, smoked whitefish spread, panko fried smelt, walleye sandwiches, Asian carp croquettes, plank-smoked lake trout, Tempura perch, and Dirk’s “Cook County” fish boil.
Conservation experts from the Shedd Aquarium’s “Right Bite” program will also be on hand.
The evening is BYOB. Tickets are $65 and include recipes and product information. Proceeds partly support Slow Food Chicago’s Terra Madre campaign.
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