Food trends like the paleo diet have been taking us back to our ancient roots and encouraging us to eat like our ancestors once did. While we have more sophisticated ways of cooking now, maybe it’s not so bad to take a look back every once in a while and eat how humans used to eat. After all, our ancestors were in incredible shape because they had no preservatives, added sugars or unnatural flavorings in their diet. This dish features the ancient grain, farro, which was popular in Ancient Rome. Other ancient grains you may have heard of include quinoa, buckwheat, chia seeds and millet. Try adding one of these fiber and protein-rich grains to your next salad to really boost your nutrition.

This dish was inspired by a package of butternut squash and kale farro my mom gave me for Easter. (As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t have a huge sweet tooth so I had more of a savory Easter basket this year). I made this for a post-workout lunch because it’s full of protein.

Timing:

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 25 minutes
• Total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients: makes one bowl

• 3/4 Cup Farro, cooked
• 1 and 1/2 Cup Fresh Spinach
• 1/3 Cup Chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 Cup Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half
• 1/2 Cup Artichoke Hearts
• 1/4 Cup Feta Cheese, crumbled
• 1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

Directions:

Cook the farro according to the instructions. (The package I used required 20 minutes to cook and 3 minutes to sit). While the farro is cooking, prepare the other ingredients. Cut the tomatoes in half, wash the chickpeas, spinach and artichoke hearts and crumble the feta if it’s not already crumbled.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl together and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Enjoy!

Enjoy!