This is clearly not a pasta bake, but it was supposed to be one. From November to December, I was pursued by a vision of an oozy, decadent french onion pasta bake — that is, the flavors of french onion soup applied to baked pasta with a bronzed and broiled gruyere topping. What was not to love? How could it not be delicious? But it was never right. I made it a few times and I never wanted to eat it. It was too rich and didn’t have enough to bite into, even by the intended standard of holiday indulgence. In the last round, I added cauliflower to it so it felt like more of a pasta-and-vegetable bake and I liked it even less (damp? somehow).
Then, as if a better idea fairy had been summoned from thin air, or perhaps a direct message on Instagram, an Elizabeth from Oakland, CA reached out and told me she’d made a farro and lentil bake with tons of caramelized onions for dinner the night before, told her kids it was french onion soup rice, and they devoured it. “Literally just oil (or butter), good stock, wine, onions, farro, lentils and thyme, and gruyere broiled on top,” she explained. Suddenly it was as if the sun had appeared from behind the clouds after a week of rain, or removing an entire block of lines in Tetris with a satisfying bloop sound, it was clearly, and retroactively obviously what I’d have preferred the whole time. I immediately made it too.
The melodrama ends here, phew, because I think this is perfect; it’s loose enough to suggest risotto, hearty enough to be utterly filling, and tastes so precisely like french onion soup that I’ll never get tired of it. Even cold, days later, I couldn’t stop eating the leftovers. I thought I’d run it for a final recipe of the year here, a luxurious late holiday season dinner, but I believe I took a nap instead. That brings us to today: It’s cold, rain and wind are heading in our direction, the sun is still setting before 5pm and it’s still dark when we wake, and thus I still be requiring bubbling, cozy dishes with cheese on top until things improve. Come join me.
Previously
6 months ago: Flaky Chocolate Cake
1 year ago: Cauliflower Salad with Dates and Pistachios
2 years ago: My Favorite Lentil Salad
3 years ago: Lemon and Lime Mintade
4 years ago: Roasted Squash and Tofu with Ginger
5 years ago: Plush Coconut Cake
6 years ago: Sheet Pan Meatballs with Crispy Turmeric Chickpeas
7 years ago: Chocolate Dutch Baby
8 years ago: Blood Orange, Almond, and Ricotta Cake and Cabbage and Sausage Casserole
9 years ago: Key Lime Pie and Make Your Own Vanilla Extract
10 years ago: Pear and Hazelnut Muffins and Warm Lentil and Potato Salad
11 years ago: Lentil Soup with Sausage, Chard, and Garlic
12 years ago: Buttermilk Roast Chicken
13 years ago: Baked Potato Soup
14 years ago: Black Bean Soup + Toasted Cumin Seed Crema and Cranberry Syrup and an Intensely Almond Cake
15 years ago: Clementine Cake and Mushroom Bourguignon
16 years ago: Chicken Caesar Salad and Fried Chicken
17 years ago: Grapefruit Yogurt Cake
French Onion Baked Lentils and Farro
- 2 pounds (910 grams) yellow onions (4 large or 5 medium), sliced
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) dry sherry, vermouth, or white wine (optional)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) dried farro
- 3/4 cup (135 grams) dried lentils, any variety, but green (le puy) or brown (italian) are my favorites here
- A few sprigs of fresh thyme
- 6 cups (1.4 liters) vegetable broth + splashes more, if needed
- 2 cups (8 ounces or 225 grams) coarsely grated gruyere cheese
Heat your oven: To 375°F (190°C).
Assemble casserole: Add garlic to the onions and cook, stirring, one minute. Add sherry, if using, and cook until it disappears. Add the farro and cook for 2 minutes. Add lentils and 6 cups broth and thyme and bring the mixture to a simmer. Season well with salt and pepper as needed. If your pan isn’t ovenproof, transfer it at this point to a casserole dish.
Bake the casserole: Cover the pan and bake, stirring about halfway through, until the lentils and farro are tender, 40 to 50 minutes. If all of the liquid has absorbed, either at the midway through point or at the end, add another 1/4 to 1/2 cup splash of broth. We’re looking for a risotto-like looseness or light “slosh” in the pan. Fish out thyme stems.
To finish: Sprinkle the dish with gruyere and broil until browned on top.
Do ahead: The dish keeps fantastically in the fridge for 4 to 5 days; rewarm in a 350-degree oven. You can also prepare the lentil and farro base a few days early, rewarm it (it will likely need more broth at this point), and broil the cheese on top right before serving.
If I wanted to make this gluten free, is there an alternate grain besides farro that you’d suggest?
I’d suggest using a shortgrain brown rice.
Do you need to soak the beans ahead of time? Just want to make sure I’m not missing anything. Thanks!
You never have to pre-soak lentils as they cook rapidly and evenly without it.
Thanks!
Delicious! I love your farro recipes… as soon as I saw this I had to make it!
Tasted good but looked bad, sorry to say, like dog vomit. Served with halved grape tomatoes on top and salad on the side to help appearance.
Didn’t see anyone else voicing this complaint.
I didn’t broil mine so it didn’t look as good as Deb’s pictures, but probably looked more like mushroom risotto. Butt it was delicious.
Fantastic recipe — classic French Onion Soup flavor with the additional depth of texture and hardiness. This was a savory, filling, perfect winter meal. Bonus features are the one-pot situation AND leftovers.
Maybe because your comment has a really bad description of the appearance of what you made?
Mine looked great! Homey and comforting, just like Deb’s pictures.
How important is the cheese? I have a vegan in our family…. Could I not include and still have. Good meal?
My thought for that would be to bake it in 2 separate dishes – all the assembly would be the same, but then scoop out servings to keep vegan into a smaller dish.
I didn’t think the cheese was essential, I didn’t use much cheese and it was delicious.
Grab some vegan parm. It’s great.
I had a similar question. Can the brown rice be substituted seamlessly or do additional adjustments need to be made to amount of liquid or cooking time?
Awesome. Do you do anything differently since it’s rice and not farro? Pre cook, change broth amount etc?
What about pearled barley?
I used quick Barley as it was all the grocery had available before we got the nasty arctic storm last week. I don’t have a comparison; but it was amazing and we loved it.
While barley would probably work as an alternative grain in this recipe, it is definitely NOT gluten free. I just wanted to make a note for anyone who has to be gluten free or cooks for someone who is gluten free 🙂
So glad you asked this and glad for the reply.
I made this using quinoa and it was still delicious-I cooked mine all on the stovetop though, so added the quinoa 20 min before time to serve assuming a shorter cooking time than the farro.
gluten free, is there an alternate grain besides farro that you’d suggest?
I’m personally going to try buckwheat/kasha. Weird that it has the name wheat in it but it’s GF. And Deb answered above to sub short grain brown rice for the farro.
Do you cover the pan for that extra 20 min cooking the onions? I’m adding water because I don’t see how they can last 20 min more!
We used gluten-free whole oat groats which worked well. They’re larger and chewier than brown rice; probably close to the mouthfeel of farro.
What a brilliant concept! It sounds absolutely delicious. We’ve been avoiding lentils here due to digestive issues— any thoughts on a substitute? Most other legumes are ok. I’m wondering whether cooked white beans (navy or cannellini) would work.
Cooked beans will work but you’ll need less broth because some is there to cook the lentils, some is there to cook the farro.
All lentils are not the same for me in terms of digestive issues. I use Bob’s Red Mill’s “green Lentils, Petite French Style.” They look different, are not as flat as regular brown, which cause digestive problems for me.
Virginia, I used to have the same issue until I tried sprouted lentils (much easier to digest). Tru Roots Organic Lentils is one brand you might try. Hope this helps.
I, too, am looking for a farro substitute. Would brown rice work?
I’m GF and was thinking of trying oat groats–but thinking they might need more liquid and a longer cooking time.
I made this tonight and used 1/2 c oat groats, 1/2 c short grain brown rice and 1/2 cup white rice (pantry cleanout!) and it was great. Cooked in 45 min plus the broiling time.
I’m wondering the same thing! Thanks for any input, Deb!
Delicious! I used barley instead of Farro and beef broth for vegetable. It makes a LOT!
I’d use a shortgrain brown rice.
Kasha is a good gluten free sub for farro, has a similar texture.
Different vibe, but look at mujadara – brown rice, lentils and caramelized onions, but a more middle Eastern taste profile.
What type of farro? Pearled? Semi-pearled?
Most farro comes semipearled, which cooks in about 45 minutes. If you buy farro that has a longer cooking time than 40 to 50 minutes, you’ll want to add it sooner than the lentils for whatever time it needs longer than 40 to 50, so it evens up in the end.
Can you substitute dried thyme for the time sprigs? And if so, how much would you put in?
A general rule of thumb is that 1 tablespoon of a fresh herb can be substituted with 1 teaspoon of the dried. Since dried thyme can be strong, I’d start with 1/2 teaspoon for this recipe
America’s Test Kitchen uses unpearled farro to make a Parmesan shrimp farrotto. They suggest putting the farro into a blender and pulsing until some of the grains are broken up a bit. That step helps to make the farro act more like arborio rice when you make farrotto. Bob’s Red Mill has unpearled farro.
I made this on the stovetop and then scooped it into two halves of a butternut squash that I had roasted in the meantime. Grated cheese over the top and broiled it for a couple minutes. I left the cheese off one half for a vegan version. Looked great and everyone liked it!
Just a questions of clarification. I do not need to presoak or soak the dried lentils or far prior to adding to the pot?
Lentils don’t need to be soaked.
I am gluten-free. Can I make this recipe with rice or quinoa?
See above
I’d recommend a shortgrain brown rice.
This looks delicious! I have all the ingredients needed except dried lentils, I have a can of cooked lentils. Do you think I could use those and just reduce the broth?
I’d reduce the broth and only add them once the farro is cooked, near the end.
Just one quick question (and it has nothing to do with substituting ingredients) —
What size casserole dish do I need?
Mine holds 4 quarts but had some room at the top. My round pan is 11″ across.
Thanks!
I just tried this in a 10” Lodge, and it did not come close to holding all the broth. Had to messily transfer to 12”, and that was close to full, especially when transferring to oven.
I’m sorry if I wasn’t clear. My pan is 11″ across and has some depth because it’s a braiser. If using a skillet, I’d start with a deeper 11″ or a 12″ regular cast iron frying pan.
I just made this, delicious! I only used 4 ounces of cheese and it seems like plenty.
How would this be without cheese on top? Looks delicious but husband is dairy-free and I find dairy-free cheese to be especially bad in a cheesy lid
Try a pan grattato/crispy crumbs/poor man’s parmesan. Stir fry bread crumbs or panko in olive oil with or without a minced garlic clove. Sprinkle generously at the table. If you leave it on the casserole it will get soggy.
Just put cheese on your portion.
I tasted mine before adding the cheese and broiling and it was damn near the best thing I’ve ever made. BTW I used beef stock (Better Than Bouillon) instead of chicken. The cheese is an added luxury – it’s delicious either way.
What if I made this but changed it so much it only tangentially resembles the original recipe? Would that be okay? Just asking for an entire community, apparently! >:(
LOL!
OMG. Right?!? I think I’ve seen a request re: subbing almost every. single. ingredient.
Deb, I’m looking forward to making this “just as it is” (in the manner of Mark Darcy appreciating Bridget Jones).
Funny, last week Rukmini Iyer shared a chickpea recipe that’s got the same vibes as this and I added it to my to-make list. Now I’m torn on which to try first! Looks like I need to start caramelizing dinner onions asap.
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2024/jan/01/quick-easy-recipe-spicy-chickpea-gratin-melted-onions-kale-rukmini-iyer
OMG, LOL.
When I got to the one about subbing the onions, I died a little inside.
You are killing me! 😅
Hahah thank you! Yeah, folks… COME ON. You can figure out how to melt cheese on a separate portion of farro. what the heck.
Haha – yes, enter all ingredients you actually do want into Google and see what recipes come up!!
I’m shaking with laughter….. Deb must have the patience of a Saint.
(… muttering “no need to soak lentils” for the ga-gillionth time….)
Please, no slight to the “Adventuring Chef” asking questions, I’m one of you. Its just kinda the same question over and over….
Delicious recipe, I had to substitute the onions (flatulence), Farro (gluten) butter(vegan), so i ended up with a great steak and potatoes.
My farro is 10 minute farro, which I assume means it’s par cooked? Do i adjust anything?
Can you use Trader Joe’s 10 minute farro?
Hi! Not sure if it helps, but I’m guessing this is a pearled farro (please correct me if I’m wrong, Deb or anyone!). I use Bob’s Red Mill, and the recipe on the bag says that boiling it for 30 minutes cooks it, so I’d bet that the gentler method in this recipe adds up to the 40-50 minute oven time described in the recipe. I find that figuring out the labeling of farro is maddening; when I try this, I’ll use a variety that calls for a 30 minute boil, which depending on the brand you buy might not be specific in terms of the type of farro listed in the ingredients on the bag. I’d avoid a quick (10 minute) farro– I’m guessing it’ll turn to mush and, in my experience, isn’t very tasty (though I imagine with all of the aromatics in this recipe, even 10 minute farro could be improved!).
Thank you so much for this information– I almost used the TJ’s farro!
Uh, that is what I used. I didn’t realize it was parcooked until it was already in the oven. At the 25 minute mark, a lot of the liquid had absorbed. I hope that’s a good sign it will come out ok. I was really looking forward to this. It honestly never occurred to me that it was anything but regular farro.
It is not mushy! It came out fine! Delicious, even.
I made this yesterday 1/29/2024, using Bob’s Red Mill organic farro. I turned out very good. The farro was done in the 50 minute cooking time. At 50 minutes the farro still has some texture or bite but is definitely completely done. Wonderful flavors and nice texture. My husband added bacon bits to his tonight.
Possibly my new favorite food. It tastes exactly like I hoped it would, based on the description. The onions took longer to caramelize than written, and the broiling took a while, but these were a small price to pay for the end result. Banger start to the year, Deb—not sure how you’re gonna top it!
She already did… with cheese of course!
It will cook faster. I’d put the lentils in and cook them for maybe 30 to 40 minutes before adding the farro, if it only needs 10 minutes to cook.
This looks like just what the doctor ordered on a winter night. Do you think it will work with freekeh?
You’ll want to cook the lentils for 30 to 40 first before adding it, to line up the cooking time with 10-minute farro.
Delicious flavor!!! I followed the recipe as directed—no regrets!
Hi Deb! This looks fantastic! Did you rinse and soak the lentils before cooking with them or just rinse? Thank you so much!
No need to soak lentils!
No need to. Well, rinsing is nice but I don’t always remember.
The SPEED at which I added all of these ingredients to my grocery list…
Made this last night & it was fantastic! Thanks so much for a superb comfort food recipe 😊
Thoughts on what to serve with this delicious looking recipe?
We had it with salad.
Made this for dinner last night and it was perfect! Ate it on a bed of roasted spaghetti squash (soaked up the broth perfectly) and a fried egg on top. Delicious. Thank you!
Love onions but they don’t love me . Any sub for all those onions? I could use one onion but not 4 or 5 .
Not to be rude, but this a French ONION soup inspired recipe. If onions aren’t your thing, probably just pass (I say this as someone that can’t tolerate garlic!)
If you use one onion, some finely diced carrots and celeriac or pastinake (english?), which you brown with the onion, you will get a wonderful lentil stew that is less oniony, but still very flavourful. Can also be done on the stovetop. It’s how I do it, and I never added a cheese covering, but sometimes a swirl of balsamico. Try it :)
Make the NYT linked recipe. It’s got a tomato base instead.
Congratulations on nailing it !
can’t wait to make this on this frigid day in Washington’s Olympic Peninsula (farther N than Maine!)
I recently made something so awful (and it had 5,000 like in NYTimes), I used the wrong lentils, it was a challenge to dispose of it
That’s where our local crow population comes in – disposal of almost any food item is a sure thing!
how’d you know i was on the hunt for farro recipes that could make a dinner? can’t wait!
Hi Deb.Looking forward to making this but before I attempt it was hoping for clarification on 2 issues raised in previous posts. What kind of farro and specifics on how to add to recipe? Should lentils be soaked first? Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Most farro at grocery stores is semi-pearled, which takes the cooking time down to about 45 minutes. I use Bob’s Red Mill brand here; others will work. If you find one where the package cooking time is much longer, you’ll just want to adjust accordingly. Since it would then cook faster than the lentils, you can add the farro first and let it cook a little before adding the lentils.
I literally drove to the store to get the ingredients, it’s in the oven now. So far, so good. Will report back!
This looks great! If I already have caramelized onions, how many cups could I use?
Hm… maybe 2 cups?
We’re doing the Three Rivers Challenge and what would you know . . . I have lentils on my docket to use! No farro, but I’m pretty sure a portion of the 75 pounds of wheat berries I just purchased will suffice! So excited!
So…when I pulled this out of the oven after 35 mins to stir it, it was very liquidy and the lentils (I used red) were fairly hard. It didn’t seem like the lentils were cooking. (I’m guessing my oven wasn’t quite hot enough?) I was in a rush to get dinner on the table. So at that point, I cooked it on the stove for ~15 mins, then finished it in the broiler for 5 mins with the Gruyère on top.
It was delicious and our teenagers had seconds! Also there is a lot left over — it probably made 8-10 servings. Yum!
Oh this looks divine! Already planning on making it tomorrow night. Do you think a cast-iron skillet would work okay for it?
Yes. You probably need one that’s 10- to 11-inch.
That’s the exact size I have! Thanks Deb!
We made it with vegan butter and Myoko’s pourable mozzarella on top, and it came out so well! I garnished it with a lot of fresh basil and parsley. Four hungry adults could take down the whole thing, if it’s not served with sides.
You don’t mention slicing the onions. I can’t imagine them NOT being sliced but stranger things have happened…. I’m going to slice them anyway but please tell me I’m wrong :D This ticks a LOT of my family’s boxes so am very excited to try it!
Ha, right! Will fix. Yes, they are sliced.
Hello! This sounds delicious, but I can’t eat lentils. What can I sub for them?
You can use another bean or legume. But if it’s already cooked (canned), it will need less liquid and probably only needs to be added at the end.
Could I use red lentils? I’m on the FODMAP diet for health reasons and red lentils are the only approved kind.
Probably! They usually cook faster and will break down in shape once they’re done.
Hi – wondering if a 14” cast iron skillet is too large for the recipe? I like the idea of stove to oven but am not sure what size would be best. Thanks for any info!
My pan is 11″ across and deep.
Would this work the same if I subbed in pearled barley? I don’t have a local source for farro (hello from Alnwick, Northumberland!) and haven’t yet got desperate enough for a grain I haven’t ever actually eaten before to turn to the evils of Bezos…the time may yet come ; )
Many thanks!
I have wondered this too (hi from Leeds). The internet says farro can be three different varieties of hulled wheat: emmer, spelt and einkorn. They seem to use emmer for farro in Italy. No idea which one the Americans have. But we have spelt in our supermarkets, both a longer-cooking and a quick-cook version. This is what I am going to try.
I used pearled spelt and it was great…in Hants.
I’m in the South-East and haven’t been able to find farro in person, so I ordered it online from Hodmedod’s UK (all British-grown grains & pulses).
We used pearled spelt from Waitrose. I think Sainsbury’s also carries an own brand version.
Weights for lentils and farro please?
This looks delicious Deb, my favourite flavours. Could I sub home made beef stock for the vegetable stock; or would that be too strong?
Accidentally posted this as a reply; reposting to get it into the “I Made This” column. TLDR: make this dish!
Possibly my new favorite food. We used French lentils and semi-pearled farro and made the recipe as written. It tastes exactly like I hoped it would, based on the description. The onions took longer to caramelize than written, and the broiling took a while, but these were a small price to pay for the end result. Banger start to the year, Deb—not sure how you’re gonna top it!
I echo these comments – took longer than expected but 100% worth the effort! Used Better than Bouillon for the vegetable broth and the dish was just packed with flavor. Didn’t need to add any salt beyond the 2 tablespoons noted. Ugly delicious at its finest!
Just made this and it is delicious! Perfect on this cold, snowy January day. So good!
Thank you for not calling this “cheesy”! I love things covered with cheese, but the word has gotten so overused. I remember when “cheesy” meant cheap or inferior. I know language changes, but I wish that every other recipe wouldn’t vaunt its cheesiness.
Hi, Deb,
I don’t have any questions- I made the recipe exactly as written except I halved it for my family of two. OMG- this is the best thing I’ve had in ages! Now I may be regretting that decision to halve! Fantastic recipe! Thank you.
Just made this, and…well, I thought the flavors (especially the onions) would be more pronounced. I’m trying to figure out what I may have done wrong:
I used sweet onions (didn’t say Vidalia, but “sweet onions”) instead of yellow—they were just so large and beautiful (2 equaled 2.5 lbs!)
I’d forgotten fresh thyme, and added a pinch of dried.
I added 6 cups of veg broth, cooked covered in oven at 385 for the full 50 minutes. The grains and beans had a light, unoffensive bite to them, but I was VERY surprised how much liquid was still in the pan. Should I have stirred more before adding the cheese? And if I’d seen that much liquid before adding cheese, should I have put it back in oven UNCOVERED for some minutes more?
Lastly, I’ve been a fan for years, and have cookbooks, so feel “qualified” to say: in this recipe, in neither place—the ingredient list NOR the first step (“caramelize your onions”) do you tell readers to slice onions thinly, chop or mince them. Not knowing, I simply sliced mine.
I’m sure you receive tons of correspondence, but I’d love to hear your critique of what I may have done/not done.
She said in the comments earlier that she had edited to say “sliced.” Also the photo shows sliced onions.
Your dish was likely bland because you used sweet onions. They are much molder than yellow onions, unfortunately, and not great for caramelizing.
I also used sweet onions and it was fabulous!
Also, not all vegetable broths are equal. Did you use store bought, or homemade? Have you tasted the broth on its own to see if it’s flavorful enough?
America’s Test Kitchen recommends this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EPJF66K?tag=tandtapp-20
Personally, I use Better Than Boullion’s Vegetable base.
I just wanted to reiterate that sweet onions work fine, and the quality of the vegetable broth is extremely important. Also, variations in farro, burner output, and oven thermometers can lead to different outcomes. I think Deb is good at trying to cover all of the bases in terms of anticipating issues we may encounter in trying her recipes, and she is so good about correcting oversights in her original posts. I detected a bit of snark in your comment and hope you understand that we are all here to learn and grow and make mistakes. Even Deb is human, after all, as much as her loyal fans worship her!
I think it’s a combo of dried thyme and sweet onions. Also as one person pointed out, the kind of veg broth matters. Am also a big fan of better than bullion, and Deb gave it a thumbs up at one point so I feel ok saying that. 😜
Regarding the soupiness, mind was a bit wet so I let it sit out of the oven for a bit with the lid off.
Ohhhh!!! This looks delish!!! I don’t want to make an extra trip to the grocery store. Do you think pearl couscous or quinoa will work? (Trying to stay away from rice).
Delicious! Made as instructed (except dried thyme in place of fresh) and it’s great. Wonderful comfort food on a cold January night.
Just made this and it’s really delicious and it’s such a comfort food. I thought of subbing mozzarella for gruyere and glad I didn’t. The gruyere gave it some umph that mozzarella wouldn’t. It took some time to make (1 hr alone to caramelize the onion) but so worth it in the end.
Made this on a super cold night and it was perfect and comforting. Halved the Gruyère but otherwise made as written and didn’t miss the extra cheese. We will definitely make again, I think this would welcome some greens thrown in during the bake time for a more complete one pot dinner.
Is there a reason not to cook this on the stove until tender and then put it under the broiler?
I didn’t test it fully on the stove, but yes, you could. It might need more checking in, is all.
Absolutely delicious! I used a combo of paremsam and Tillamook cheddar. Also used Trsder Joes 10 minute farro and added halfway thru. Thanks for the yummy recipe. .
Did you adjust the time with the Trader Joe’s ten minute farro?
I used the 10-minute Trader Joe’s Farro and just threw it in when the recipe called for it. It turned out great, just a tender texture. It’s hard to overlook farro!
This was so good! But, there was SO much liquid left! I too only had 10-minute farro so I added it the last 10 minutes so I think that’s part of the reason why – I only added 1 cup of lentils and then an additional cup of farro. I will have to probably play with the liquid a bit or find longer-cooking farro so there’s not so much liquid left. Definitely a cozy winter meal!
Or just use less liquid?
Instructions are a guideline not the hard rule. You should be working towards the end result, which was brown (liquid free) onions and loosely wet farro/lentils. That means you may have to cook things longer or less depending on where you are, your oven, etc.
Absolutely delicious! Thanks for the great recipe. Added a bulb of fennel to the onions and some lemon juice before layering the cheese on top. Also, used marsala instead of sherry.
I made this for dinner last night, and wow, what a meal! I used black beluga lentils, and subbed in kamut as I couldn’t find farro, but otherwise made the recipe as written. The flavor was incredible! The lentils and kamut had a pleasant chew, and the liquid was mostly absorbed. I am so excited for leftovers this week!
Deb, as a diabetic, I’m trying to cut back on higher glycemic grains in my diet. Lentils are pretty great, so I’m wondering if the dish would suffer -in your opinion- from strictly using lentils vs lentils and farro.
Made as directed, expect used brown rice. It took a little longer than 50 min in the oven for the rice to be cooked through. Overall flavor of the dish was a little lacking and underwhelming for the nearly 2 hour cooking time. Make sure you season very well and add in extra time for grains to be cooked through.
I made this, replacing the farro (which I couldn’t find) with 1.5 cups of brown rice. It cooked for about 65 minutes. I made the base in preparation for a meal later this week, so far even without the cheese it’s delicious!
Why no announcement about the podcast yet?!
Ah, I completely forgot! 2024: I will get better at regularly posting news and events here, and not just on Instagram and my newsletter.
Made this last night. Awesome exactly as written, except I used dried thyme instead of fresh. I love how it tasted so decadent but also quite nourishing and healthy. It’s making me want to experiment with other cheese-topped farro and lentil bake possibilities…
Any suggestions for replacing the lentils? They are high in oxalates that can cause kidney stones which my family has a history of, so we try to avoid them.
You can use another bean. If it’s already cooked, you’ll want to reduce the liquid amount and add them near the end. If it’s uncooked, you’d want to soak them and add them a lot earlier or it could take hours.
So, so, so delicious! I subbed short grain below rice for the farro to make it gluten free bit otherwise kept all other ingredients the same and it was absolutely scrumptious!
Would this freeze well if I just left the cheese off until I was ready to serve it? I’m looking for hearty postpartum recipes I can make in advance and this sounds like something I will absolutely be craving after labor.
I used buckwheat groats instead of farro to make it GF for my celiac kid. Added it after about 20 min of cooking the lentils to adjust for cooking time. Very yummy!!!
I made this tonight and couldn’t stop eating it. Divine. Wonderful job Deb!
Perhaps a silly question, but will the flavor change significantly if I use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth?
Not a lot.
I added kale that I had to get rid of and some tomato paste. And just added the cheese on top towards the end of baking time. Delicious!
At what point in the cooking did you add in the kale?
For all the GF people: I made this tonight. The flavor was delicious! Instead of farro I used sorghum. I will definitely make this again, and probably with sorghum again as well. Next time, I will start the sorghum about 30 min before I add in the lentils, and it may need an additional cup of broth. Tonight my sorghum was not fully cooked and a bit crunchy (not bad actually, but I would tweak for that next time).
This was amazing, especially on this frigid winter day. It was a little “soupy” when done so I may reduce the broth just a little next time (only had chicken bone broth so used that) . I ended up adding 2 more tablespoons of dry sherry to get that French onion soup taste. My husband loved it. Definitely adding this one to my recipes.
So I don’t have an oven-proof pan that’s big enough for this recipe, but I do have a large dutch oven. So here’s what I’m thinking – prep double in the dutch oven, take out and freeze (unbaked) half and then bake the rest following the instructions.
I assume I’d have to add extra liquid for the 2nd batch when I bake it from the freezer but that’s easy to do. And mostly this will save me from 2 dirty pans and also if I’m gonna caramelize onions, I want to do as large a batch as possible! I suppose I could just double the onions and freeze half of those – I guess will depend on my freezer space!
This bake turned out almost perfect – it took 2.5 hours total but most of that is hands off. I added some dried red pepper and doubled the garlic. It ended up a little oversalted, so I wish I’d used 1 tsp salt on the onions instead of two, or a reduced sodium broth, which I didn’t have on hand. For sure will make it again this winter to have with a good crusty bread.
Somehow you knew I wanted to make this before I even knew such a recipe existed! I had all the ingredients and it’s in the oven now, smelling divine.
I added kale! Because kale! I also subbed a tablespoon of miso dissolved in water for the vegetable broth. Otherwise, made as is and it was DeLICIoUS!!! Onions cooked faster than 40 mins, which was a nice bonus because the farro and lentils needed 45 mins in the oven. A simple but delicious recipe. Thank you!
I used brown rice instead of farro, cooked for 60 minutes. Yum!
Wow! This did not disappoint! It truly tasted like French onion soup as a casserole. I’m embarrassed to admit I had 3 helpings. Ultimate comfort food on a cold winter night!
Dude. Damp food. I totally get what you mean, even though I never would have thought of it that way. Ew gross. This, however, is delicious! I made it with barley instead of farro because it is what I had, and I haven’t even put the cheese on it yet, and it tastes so good.
Deb
It’s been a while since I’ve written a review. As I saw this recipe yesterday something in me said make it. I’m so happy I did. Followed it exactly minus substituting dried thyme because I forgot to buy fresh. My tweens loved it, my husband – a huge hit. Not sure why others struggled with liquid, I might guess their ovens weren’t hot enough? It was a huge hit. Served it with crusty bread. I found the flavor deeply complex and perfect for the cold snap that hit the northeast this weekend. Thanks for feeding me & my loved ones for many years.
I made this tonight and followed the recipe exactly and it came out perfect. Just made another one as I’m entertaining tomorrow night and I mistakenly used 4 cups of beef broth with 2 cups of vegetable broth. Hoping it still tastes good!
Just made this tonight. Fan-freaking-tastic as written. Took me like 2 hours and 15 minutes, though.
This looks delicious. But also, if you do want to continue pursuing the pasta version, I highly recommend this: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020547-french-onion-macaroni-and-cheese
I’ve been looking for a saucy, vegetarian thing to serve over polenta (something with pot roast vibes). This was the perfect inspiration. I made 1 1/2 c lentils with lots of onions and braised veggies on the side. It had all the pot roast vibes, but no meat. Thanks for the inspiration.
I just realized that this is very much like “Mjedderah“, a dish I learned from Syrian women a few years ago. They use bulgur or rice and no cheese, but the simplicity and beauty of it is the same!
I made this as written and it was delicious. 3 onions from Whole Foods totaled more than 2 pounds and caramelization took a bit longer than expected. Probably should have cut this in half for 2 people as it makes *a lot* but leftovers will be served tonight!
This is very good! I switched out barley for farro because it is what I had and it is delicious!! I also didn’t have time to put the cheese on it and it still is so good!!! I have been trying to eat more whole grains and this fits the bill.
I used the 10 minute farro and added for final 20 min. Also reduced liquid to 5 cups. So cozy and delicios!
I didn’t have farro, and it’s like 10 degrees here so I shopped in my pantry. I used course bulghur and chanadal. It was amazing.
I’m not one of those people who change all the ingredients in the comments. lol
I just wanted everyone to know that coarse bulghur works in a pinch. :)
WHAT??? BAKED LENTILS?? I AM IN LOVE
I made this! The kitchen smelled amazing with the onions cooking and then the broth bubbling. I used red lentils, and they basically dissolved into the broth by the end of cooking, leaving just a little bit of a grainy texture, which was also gone after re-heating. No complaints here, but just so you know what to expect.
I eyeballed the cheese; it was probably a bit more than 2 cups, but if I make this again I’d use way less or even omit it. It was tasty but the vibe went from “thick whole grain soup” to greasy/heavy.
I need more guidance on the lentils. Will this be good with standard green lentils, the kind that totally break down in soups? Or do you really need the French lentils that hold their shape? I’m tempted to use the bag of standard greens I have in the cabinet but worried it will ruin the dish.
The texture will be different if you use lentils that break down but if it won’t bother you, I say go for it. I prefer ones here that hold their shape, however.
Bless you for the perfect recipe for an Arctic air blast, because who wants to go grocery shopping when it’s 14 degrees out, anyway? In a clean-out-the fridge-and-avoid-the-supermarket binge, I made a few wee changes: substituting rehydrated jarred chicken bouillon paste for the veggie broth, adding a little thinly sliced lacinato kale, and chopped up two sad slices of leftover salami. I regret nothing…and we will be eating the leftovers happily tonight with some slow-roasted roma tomatoes on the side for some tangy zing.
I made this yesterday while hibernating from the winter cold, and it was perfect! I used sweet onions and brown lentils in my cast iron braiser, and six cups of liquid was perfect after 40 minutes.
The only thing that I’ll note is that I prepared the base about an hour ahead before sprinkling the cheese on, and didn’t fully reheat it (because it wasn’t cold, just slightly warmer than room temp) and so when I broiled the cheese, it did not fully adhere and you could pull it off like a lid with your fork. So, moral of the story here is, always listen to Deb! Next time I do it, I’ll broil the cheese and immediately fluff it with the serving spoon so the melted cheese gets incorporated into the whole thing.
This is amazing! I added some kale at the end. Looking forward to taking it in my lunch this week.
SO. GOOD. I just finished a bowl of this curled up by the fire. Just wow. I even halved the cheese in an attempt to atone for my holiday overindulgence and it’s still so decadent and satisfying yet healthy-ish (lentils! farro!) This is exactly what I want to eat on a cold January day. Thanks Deb!!
This is a French-Onion-Soupified version of a super cheap and filling casserole my family pretty much lived on when my dad was in grad school. Lentils, onions, tomatoes, carrots and celery baked until the lentils are tender, then topped with cheddar cheese. My mom can’t stand this dish anymore, but it’s total comfort for for me! Looking forward to trying this high-class cousin!
Sadly this was a bit of a miss for us. While the flavor was great, it was way too soupy, even after 90min. Not sure where we went awry, and keeping the leftovers to toss with blistered tomatoes/salad, but not sure it’ll be back in rotation for us.
Wow! Make this now.
I was feeling lazy today, so after caramelizing the onions, I just dumped everything in the slow cooker for 6 hours on low, then put it in a casserole pan to broil. It came out so perfect – the kind of thing your family just eats bite by bite hunched over the stove before you ever get the chance to plate it.
PS for those who commented it’s not oniony enough, try taking a half a shallot, splash of vinegar, with a cup of the cooked lentils/farro and immersion blend it, then mix that back into dish before broiling. I ended up adding too much salt, and that fixed my error.
Fellow home cooks: please learn from my (sort of) mistakes! I made this without the farro (used 2 cups of lentils instead) because I wanted to eat it with some bread I needed to use up. While it still turned out great, a whole lot of the french onion flavor was covered up by the flavor of the lentils. PS – I grated a block of Daiya smoked gouda and, even though it’s not a direct sub for gruyere, it worked marvelously and made for a delicious vegan alternative.
I have a lot of leftover already-cooked farro; can I use it for this?
Definitely a new favorite! Very simple recipe to make, you just have to be patient when sautéing the onions and again while it’s baking. I read some of the other comments and decided to add a scant 1/4 cup more green lentils to absorb some of the extra water some of folks commented on and half as much salt, but we’re a low sodium house. Finally, I took a chance and added about 1 & 1/2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms at the half way point with the onions and mixed in about the same amount of chopped collards half way during cooking and it paid off. It was super duper delicious and my husband loved it too!
First, the flavor profile of this dish is off the charts. SOOO GOOD. I love french onion soup, but it never leaves me satisfied. Thanks for dreaming up a dish that does! My only word of caution to others is that the farro took a bit longer to cook than anticipated–I had to keep it in the oven for 110 minutes. I might try barley next time to see if that helps. Thanks again!
I’m not a farro fan… do you think this could be made with either all lentil, or a combination of brown rice and lentil?
Yes, you might just need to adjust the liquid amount and/or cooking times, depending on the cooking times of what you use.
Anybody make this with Trader Joe’s farro?
Just did, works perfectly 👌
I cannot wait to make this! Are these servings for main or side dish portions? Thanks Deb!
Main
Thank you!
This was so delicious! I doubled the garlic, and used a mix of store-bought vegetable stock and homemade mushroom stock.
I suspect my oven runs cool, so after reading some of the comments about too much liquid, I turned my oven up to 390, which worked perfectly.
A perfect meal for a snowy winter night, cozy and filling without being heavy. I served it with a salad of baby romaine and roasted broccoli. I’ll definitely be adding this to my regular rotation!
This was an unexpected hit in our household and perfect for a cold winters eve. Even the picky toddlers enjoyed it! I used a mix of red and yellow onions and shallots cuz that’s what I had on hand, and added crumbled cornbread muffins on top as “croutons” before adding cheese and broiling – I had them leftover from a previous meal and it added extra heft and texture to this dish. Sprinkled with some Parmesan and parsley, & alongside a salad. Thank you Deb for yet another fantastic, foolproof, family friendly meal.
Ooh I’ll have to add some croutons next time! Thanks for the idea :)
I have quick cook farro. Do I need to change anything?
I made it with quick-cook last night! Assuming your farro says it takes 10 minutes to cook, wait to add it until the lentils are nearly cooked in the oven. I think I put the lentils in the oven for about 30 minutes, then added the farro, and then waited the 10 minutes for the farro to cook, and then broiled the cheese.
You’ll want to add it later in the cooking process, so it finishes when the lentils do. Check the cooking time on the package you have.
I didn’t realize I had the TJ farro until it was already cooking. It came out fine even just following the recipe. Not mushy.
I made this a few days ago and IT IS THE PERFECT FOOD FOR 10 degree weather.
This is the most delicious recipe! I love french onion soup in theory, but the brothiness and lack of interesting textures always left me wanting more. This version – with toothy lentils and farro – not only adds to the nutritional content of this meal, but makes it much more delicious. It certainly takes a while to cook, but is nearly entirely idle after the initial onion/garlic chopping and cheese grating. This will be a repeat menu item for sure, with a bright lemony kale salad on the side. (For those who have asked about quick-cook farro, that’s what I had so we used it. Just waited until the lentils were nearly done and added for the last 10 minutes.)
Made this last night with the goal of eating most of it for lunches this week. I ended up cooking the base/’soup’ portion (e.g. everything but the gruyere) on the stovetop in the same large Dutch oven I used to caramelize the onions. Scooped some of the resulting farro/lentil/onion mixture into some smaller lunch-sized ramekins for individual servings, then topped with gruyere and broiled. Served with a quick side salad, this was an ABSOLUTELY fantastic lunch for a snowy, cold day in NYC. Can’t wait to repeat tomorrow!
Oh wow! Deb, your french onion baked farro and lentils recipe is SO good! My husband was thrilled to find out how much protein, fiber, and good stuff this has in it and has said he can, and I quote, “eat this once a week”! So, it’s going in our favorites rotation–thank you for a non-meat protein packed dinner recipe!!!
I made this as written, but cooked it on the stove top until it reached the right consistency, then popped it in the oven with cheese on top. Delicious and comforting!
Incredibly delicious! My new favorite recipe.
Not my fave but did taste like French onion soup. I made it exactly as written. Have faith – halfway through it did seem liquidy but at 50 minutes was fine. I’m going to add some
stock and roasted vegetables and make soup with some of it. Also – it made a LOT. I was going to make a half recipe and wish I had but I’ll freeze some.
The French onion lentils and farro sounds wonderful. Given how rich it sounds, I am curious what you might serve it with for a small dinner party. A simple broiled fish and a green salad?
That would work well. I added some roast squash and beets to it, would be good with a nice zingy salad, but with lentils doesn’t need a lot of extra protein. Any grilled meat or fish would be good, Sausages would be really nice.
That sounds delicious.
Made a slightly altered version due to necessity and a lack of a proper oven during kitchen renovation. Used pearled spelt which is the UK farro equivalent, fewer onions as I didn’t have enough, added some roast squash and beets in desperate need of eating, mainly made on stovetop and used Gouda on top. Was very delicious…and a teeny bit purple ;-)
This was delicious!! I knew I had to make it the second I saw it posted on Instagram. It took my onions a bit longer to fully caramelize (probably closer to 50 minutes-1 hour than 40), but everything else was pretty much spot on! I made this in the middle of the day up until the step of adding cheese, then finished it up when we were ready for dinner by baking (with the cheese on top) for 20 minutes at 375, and broiling as suggested. All of the flavors of french onion soup, but a bit more hearty and filling with the farro and lentils. Such a cozy dish!
This is absolutely AMAZING. I had to sub red onions for 1/2 of the onions because I messed up my grocery list, but this was still incredible. Incredible flavor, and as a vegetarian in a family of omnivores, it was a perfect side for them, main for me. I’m amazed that so few ingredients (including a cheese I usually don’t like but loved in this) can make something so incredible.
This was universally well received by all 6 diners tonight! Guiltless cozy food for these single digits… also my 12 year old declared that he loved lentils so definitely a winner. Also can confirm that the “Techniquely” method of caramelization does indeed shorten the time required! I might add diced carrots to this next time because they seem like they would nestle well here plus a little more color wouldn’t hurt.
This was fantastic!! Even my picky teen loved it. So warm, hearty and healthy. Love how satisfying it is. Served with crusty bread.
This one is a keeper! It does taste like French onion soup, but the farro and lentils make it a hearty meal. I cooked it on the stovetop instead of the oven, then just broiled the cheese on top.
This was absolutely delicious. I followed the recipe exactly as written and I wouldn’t change a thing! It was so flavorful; nutty and the perfect combination of flavors. Thank you for sharing this recipe, it will certainly be in my rotation to be enjoyed regularly.
I started this too late on a weeknight, I didn’t weigh the onions, sliced up 3 big ones and started caramelizing in a Le Cruset braiser. The onions ended up taking about 2 hours to caramelize! I had homemade beef stock and dry sherry on hand, so used those, and finished the dish in the oven up to the cheese part — we got take out and I put it in the fridge until the next day. Warmed it on the stove while the oven was heating, added a little water to slosh it up and finished in the oven with cheese. The night in the fridge was magical, it was SO FREAKING GOOD. We thought we’d freeze half but 3 of us ate almost all of it. I’ll probably get a couple lunches with the left overs, and I can’t wait.
I only used about 3 oz of broth as I used canned lentils but oh my goodness this recipe is very delicious and it may not last very long in my fridge…
Thanks ….
Really enjoyed this but I found the six cups of broth to be too much and it ended up a bit soupy. I was using an ancient grain farro so maybe it needed less liquid? Anyway would definitely make again but would start with 4 cups of broth and top up as needed.
I had to bake this for over an hour & a half, the baked longer with the lid off. The fluid was just not absorbing! In the end, we LOVED the flavours of this dish, & the texture was good. I used a mixture of emmer, kamut & spelt – in place of farro. My research said that farro is called emmer in Canada. I just wanted any other Canadians to know the alternate .. in case you have other grains in your pantry. I added about 3/4 tsp of dried thyme instead of fresh (cuz its winter). Thanks Deb – another winner recipe.
This was a perfect snow day recipe! Cozy!
Made and enjoyed last night. Next time I might use less cheese–I love cheese, but the surface area was too small . . . or maybe dirty another pan and bake it in a 9×13″ pan?
(I also used one quart of chicken broth + 2 C water, and it was fine.) Another winner from SK! Thanks, Deb!
I made this last night, exactly as written (my normal first time rule) A few comments, if I do it again I will add a bay leaf as well as the thyme. It needed something…we ended up putting different types of hot sauce on different parts of it to try to figure out what we felt was missing (got 6 sauces for Christmas, we’re trying them on all kinds of things) In the end dry hot Paprika was the winner. It paired nicely with the onion flavours. My husband thought it needed sausage, but he thinks everything needs sausage! It probably would go well though.
Made this yesterday and we have enjoyed it twice. It is actually pretty much „mjdderah“, which I learned from my Syrian guests. They use rice or bulgur, but I prefer the farro now! My only tweak was to add dijon mustard, cuz I use it in my French onion soup, as well.
made this with chicken bouillon instead of broth. the color was resultingly not cute, but it was delicious and we all gobbled it up. All I could find was “10 minute” farro, so I added it after about 20 minutes of the lentils cooking, but the lentils were on the old side too and were taking extra time, so it all worked out, although it did take significantly longer than recipe suggested and of course I did have to add lots of extra water and wine.
The only substitution I made was using beef broth instead of vegetable broth. Aside from that, I made the recipe as written, and it worked perfectly. Absolutely delicious!
Wow, made this tonight and it slapped. It took me a bit longer to caramelize my onions but I was not heavy on the heat because I didn’t want to burn them! We ate with crusty bread, but I think toasting some baguette and sprinkling them with even more Gruyère would be so good too!! A 10/10 recipe!!!
Absolutely delicious! I used precooked lentils and adjusted the broth. So, so, so good and will make instead of French onion soup!
Gorgeous! I didn’t plan well and so arrived home later than I meant to the night we were making this so I improvised a bit and let it go for ~10 minutes on a simmer after the lentils were added, and then only did ~20 minutes in the oven before uncovering and broiling with the cheese. Everything was cooked through and lovely; no idea how much this version suffered in terms of texture or flavor compared to the original but it was definitely delicious and I’m glad we put in the full amount of time into caramelizing the onions and scrimped on the back end instead of the reverse.
Hi Deb, I made this recipe a few days ago on a frigid day and it was perfection! (made with the ingredients called for :))
Highly recommend a fried egg on top and a simple arugula salad for a great left-overs lunch or dinner. Thank you for introducing this delight to the world!
Made it. LOVE it. I oversalted a bit (not properly accounting for the saltiness of the Gruyere), but that’s on me. I added some chopped parsley on top to give it a little freshness. I think I could finish the entire pot on my own in one sitting. As another commenter said, the onion caramelization took a little longer than indicated in the recipe as did the gruyere broiling, but well worth the wait.
This is SO delicious. I modified it a smidge to use what I had in the pantry: I caramelized the onions and cooked the lentils in a cast iron skillet on the stove. I also cooked some bulgur (the only hearty-ish grain thing I happened to have) separately because I was worried the cook times were too dissimilar for the oven method. I then combined the bulgur with the lentils, topped it generously with cheddar (what I had) and some leftover sliced Swiss and broiled. I can imagine how delicious it would be with farro and gruyere- and I’ll make it that way in the future- but know that even with non-optimal swaps it is the best thing I’ve made or eaten in a really long time. Tasty, hearty, luxurious. Thanks, Deb!
not going to lie: the onions took me forever (to cut and to caramelize) and my place is probably going to smell like cheese for weeks.
but this was so worth it! thanks Deb, for another smash hit in my family!
there was no Gruyere to be had so I used a grated mix for Käsespätzle and it was perfect.
This was such a huge hit with my toddler. She had it for lunch today and went “oh yum yum yum” 😋 leftovers are so good with a dippy egg and toast
Another delicious recipe! I couldn’t find farro so I substituted pot barley and it turned out wonderfully! A deeply cozy and satisfying meal
Fantastic!!! Followed the recipe, although I omitted the sherry. Used “Kitchen Basics” unsalted vegetable stock. This is delicious comfort food on a cold night. The liquid that was left at the end was made to be absorbed by some bread. So good! Will definitely make this again.
I love French onion soup so this recipe immediately captured my interest. I followed the recipe to the letter, and the dish came out exactly as described. Every ingredient is crucial to create the amazing texture and flavor. I was tempted to reduce the amount of broth because I thought it would be too ‘soupy’, but I stuck to the recipe and was glad I did…the moisture level was exactly ‘risotto-like’. Perfection! The recipe is definitely a keeper and perfect for a winter meal. Kudos to you!
We made this tonight and it was amazing. We did have to increase the bake time by about 20 min uncovered because it was just too watery. This is definitely something we’ll make again soon…perfect for Canadian winter! We might add some mushrooms next time.
Would it be ok in a 9×13, or should I 1.5 the quantities, do you think? Need to return a dish to a friend, and hate to give it back empty… :)
I’m thinking of using freeka since I’m out of farro and my local market won’t have it. Making your black bean chili tonight!
I think it should fit — I’m using a 4-quart and there’s room on top.
Wow this is delicious, just as written. A perfect comfort on a snowy day. Delicious!!!
I just realized that this is essentially mujadara with cheese. Most mujadara recipes call for rice, but my favorite version, served at a local Middle Eastern restaurant, uses wheat berries instead of rice. So delicious!
Made this – delicious! The farro is especially nice. I think next time, I would actually double the onions, to really up the french onion soup factor! I added more liquid at the halfway point and next time will add even more. I added some miso paste to give my boxed stock more oomph, and it works great here.
This is SOOO good.
That is all.
We got two generous dinners and a petite lunch for our two person household out of this, leaving an even more petite amount left over. So, I made the SK roasted tomato soup and stirred the leftovers in. Excellent!
This was so delicious. Used the recipe exactly- lentils & farro were cooked perfectly. And the sweetness of the onion made the dish. Would make it again
I just made this and can vouch for the recipe’s deliciousness and as a great use of a lazy snowy morning. I used Better than Bullion No Chicken for the broth but will substitute a beef broth next time to make the dish taste more like French onion soup and, in my view, even better. Deb’s recipe for that soup in her “Keepers” book is excellent but my teen son dislikes soups, so I thought I’d see if he’d be up for eating this instead. We’ll serve it with some homemade bread. If you don’t have any or don’t make break, maybe buy a baguette?
found this bland. Caramelizing took a lot
longer than advertised; always does for me (which likely just means I’m doing it wrong).
I just made this exactly as directed and it came out perfectly. I agree with the comment that it doesn’t look pretty. I don’t have the correct bowls but I think I’d like to spoon it into individual bowls and then broil the Gruyère. That might improve its look. Thanks for the recipe!
Made this today, as written. Flavors are tremendous. Thanks, Deb!
Super delicious. I made this in an 8 qt instant pot and to be GF, used long grain brown rice. To do it in the instant pot I used 5 cups of stock instead of 6 at 15 min with a natural release.
Thanks for this! It’s clearly made for an instant pot – after the onions are caramelized that is. Considering doing the caramelization with the air fryer :D
I’m also interested in trying this in the Instant Pot. Shannon (or anyone else who’s tried this in the IP) – I’m wondering if you had success caramelizing the onions using the sauté function in the IP? Or was it done separately in a different pan? Also, would the same ratio work in a 6 QT IP or are further adjustments needed? (I’m assuming you used the same amount of lentils). Thanks in advance for any guidance :)
This was DELICIOUS. We’re at 7200 feet altitude and were paranoid about everything cooking, so we soaked the lentils (beluga) and farro in advance. Still, after 40 minutes, they were still *very* al dente (the onions took longer to caramelize as well), so we threw them in the instant pot for 5 minutes before transferring back to the pan to broil. Voila! Rave reviews from everyone.
This is such a satisfying dish to prepare. On a snowy New England day, I took my time, savoured every moment of the caramelizing process, and blissfully inhaled the aroma of the oven time. Amazingly, my vegetable averse, carnivore husband consumed massive quantities of this meal, and polished off every bit of the leftovers the next day. Thank you so much for your heart, soul, and stomach warming recipes!!!
Oh yes! I forgot to mention how wonderful the house smelled while this was cooking!
what pan /size pan are you using?
Stain 3.4 qt braiser
I’m using a 4-quart braiser that’s 11″ across.
This was very delicious! I only had 10 minute farro so I added it half way through cooking & it came out great. We will be enjoying this often. Thanks Deb!
I made this with barley because I had barley and not farro. I made a one to one sub and it was delicious!
I forgot to pick up fresh thyme and I only have dried. Presuming this works, how much would you recommend I use? Thanks! Excited to try this.
Maybe just 1 teaspoon
Delicious! It makes a lot. Will it freeze?
Yes
This was fantastic! We don’t often eat lentils in our household (and have never made farro) so I was a little worried if the rest of the family would enjoy this, but we all did! Super hearty and savory and budget friendly. It was truly the perfect meal for our recent frigid weather. I’m really looking forward to eating leftover since it sounds as though they will only get better.
I do want to mention to anyone considering making this recipe that 40min was not nearly enough time to truly caramelize the onions on my stove, it took closer to 80min. Rather than watching the time, I recommend following her descriptors and matching the color to photos to ensure you get the right flavor.
Thanks so much for what I’m sure will be a staple winter recipe in our household!
Mine were good after 45 so you are absolutely right to watch for colour and sweetness rather than time.
This was absolutely incredible, and less work than I feared. I subbed farro with pearled barley and vegetable with beef stock because I had both on hand, which seemed to work great. My wife, a Walloon who typically eschews my American recipes, even tried it and confirmed for her parents, who are visiting, that it was good.
I made this tonight, and it was a huge family hit. I had a couple of wrinkles – which were 1) it took me an hour to caramelize the onions, 2) I made 33% more (2 cups farro, 1 cup lentils, 8 cups liquid) to make sure I had enough for leftovers, 3) I used “roasted” farro (it was what I had), which didn’t absorb the liquid as well as semi-pearled farro and 4) I used 50:50 mix of homemade vegetable stock with beef stock. So it was more of a thick soup, the farro remained crunchy (but not unpleasant) – but **so delicious**: earthy, savory and satisfying. Everyone wanted seconds.
When I make it again, I’ll switch to semi-pearled farro and add more cheese. THANK YOU!
Loved it! Super comforting on a frigid night and very delicious. Next time, I’d add another pound of onions for just a tad more onion flavor. They caramelized perfectly following your instructions. Very simple especially if you slice all those onions in a food processor!
I made this last night as written and it turned out perfectly! This is going on our winter rotation.
This seemed like a perfect dinner for the cold, rainy weather we’ve been having here the past few days. I had some boxed beef broth that needed using up, and extended it to six cups by adding some water, chopped up veggies, and a bit of chicken better than bouillon, which I simmered while prepping the rest of the recipe, similar to what I would do for french onion soup. The result was phenomenal. It was a bit liquidy in the end, but not in a bad way because the whole thing was somewhere in between soup and farrotto in the most wonderful way. I think, if one wanted to make it less liquidy-just adding 4-5 cups initially and then more if needed at the halfway point, when stirring. I personally don’t think I would change a thing-I had to stop myself at two bowls! And the final touch? Much to my delight, I had some leftover craggy, crispy sourdough croutons I had made the day before to salvage some dried out rosemary bread hidden in the back of my fridge. This simple addition really put the dish over the top. The whole thing is so, so good, and very filling with the addition of lentils and farro. Another winner-thanks Deb!
This was so good! Our family of 5 loved it, and agreed it should be on rotation. I made the recipe as written, using Le Puy lentils from Rancho Gordo, the only farro I could find at our grocery store, and Spanish sherry. It provided a hearty dinner and there were enough leftovers for lunch for me and my husband two days later. Next time, I will add a bit more caramelized onion and thyme, because we all love caramelized onion, and I don’t think I put in quite enough thyme sprigs; I want to amp up the French onion soup vibes even more. Thanks, Deb!
I’m hoping you can help me understand one of the measurements here. The recipe calls for 2 Cups (8 oz) of cheese. But 2 Cups equals 16 ounces, so this confuses me. I’ve been seeing this in a lot of recipes and can only guess that perhaps the volume you actually want is 8 oz, and if using cups for measurement, maybe it would look like 2 C. worth? I’m continuously confused by this – as it is inherently paradoxical. Thanks for clarifying :)
Deb or someone else can feel free to correct me on this, but ounces are a measure of weight while cups are a measure of volume. It depends on what you’re measuring as to how much 2 cups will weigh. In this case, you’re measuring grated cheese, which is not heavy, so I’m thinking 8 oz is probably closer to correct. When in doubt, default to the weight, which will give the most consistently accurate results.
I try to very rarely use ounces as a liquid measure here, as it’s confusing. I either use ml or the weight of the liquid, which makes it easier if you’re using a scale anyway — you then don’t need to find a liquid measuring cup.
I searched the world over and couldn’t find farro. Ended up using barley instead. It maybe could have cooked longer? I liked it, and wouldn’t have maybe left a comment, but my sweet little niece LOVED it. Declared it her new favorite during dinner, and, when claiming a share of the leftovers for her lunch the next day, indicated that she is, in fact, addicted to it. When barley and lentils do this to a person, you comment on the blog. xox
I followed recipe exactly and it was absolutely delicious! Would not change anything about this recipe. Cannot wait to make it again!
My must-have-meat-to-qualify-as-dinner husband and our two boys and I devoured this. It’s definitely going into our winter weeknight rotation. Yes, the cooking time was about 2 hours, but it is SERIOUSLY hands off and easy and (also important!) produced very few things to clean up afterwards.
Highly recommend for a working-from-home afternoon, I managed to finish work, help kids with homework and make salad and dressing while the onions were softening and this was in the oven.
Yes, my thoughts exactly – next time I’ll make this on a WFH day. Easy, but takes a while!
Loved this! Ended up using more lentils, just to “finish the bag.” Roasted red peppers and carrots same time- will mix them in for the leftover second round.
Really delicious! I love onion soup and enjoyed this even more. I used what I had on hand, red wine and half red onions instead of yellow and it turned our great. We all enjoyed the extra heartiness during our crazy snow week in Nashville! Thank you for sharing! Cheers!
I made this. Vegan husband loves! (even though I made without any cheese for him.) I did have to cook for an extra 10-15 min though, to get the liquid to cook out.
This was SO good. I made it exactly as written and it really seemed to follow the timeline as described. I always want to love lentils, but hadn’t found the recipe that truly made that happen for me… this one is fantastic!
We loved this! Takes some time for a weeknight but mostly hands off. I found 6 cups of broth to be a bit more than needed so will reduce by 1/4-1/2 cup next time, and add as needed before the cheese broil. We are only two people so will have lots of leftovers, so the extra broth will be a good thing. I used better than bouillon veg base and it was perfect.
We loved having buttered toast on the side to mop up the broth and scoop up cheesy grain filled bites. I would make this for company with a big loaf of crusty garlic bread and a nice bright and acidic green salad on the side.
Truly a comforting bowl of French onion soup flavour with the added nuttiness, protein and chew of the farro and lentils. Delightful!
Excellent! It was so “meaty” even though it is vegetarian. It is definitely a plan ahead type dish. It really did take about 2 hours total. Worth it!
Made this tonight! I am always looking for vegetarian recipes that I can add into our repertoire as I have a vegetarian daughter. She loves French onion flavors, and we eat a lot of farro, and add in lentils- well it has it all! Ha!
The outcome was okay-I felt like it really wanted some brightness somehow. Or maybe some more veg in there. It was rather heavy. Also, I had 6 oz of Gruyère and that was plenty.
Not sure this is a ‘keeper’ for me.
Turned out great! I think, as others have noted, the specific vegetable broth used heavily influences the flavor. The thyme infused really well.
This recipe was delicious and the leftovers were as good as Deb promised. As for the appearance of the dish: it’s a bowl of lentils and grains and caramelized onions covered in cheese, and that’s what it looks like. Scatter some parsley if you must, but my family thought it looked plenty appetizing. Perfect snowy meal. Thank you, Deb!
This is a keeper! The caramelized onions add a ton of flavor and the chewiness of the farro is so satisfying! Mine took a little longer in the oven (although this may have been user-error as I’m not certain that it was truly simmering before I transferred from the stovetop to the oven). I think I baked for about 70 minutes (stirring about three times during the whole process) and the end result had just a bit of liquid – which is what I think you want here, you’re not looking for a baked rice type of dish, but more of a risotto-y type of dish. And despite how smelly I find gruyere, definitely do not skip adding it and giving it a quick finish under the broiler. The cheese is delicious (despite its stinky-ness) and the broiling gives it beautiful color. Thank you as always for such wonderful recipes!
Delicious!!
Oh please please include the metric system again!
Added!
Delicious! And brilliant! I had left over lentils in the fridge )from making a vegetarian ‘shepherds pie’), caramelized onions in the freezer (was going away and wanted to use them up), and there was dinner. Plus leftovers. Thank you!
I thought I had farro, but I don’t, and my local market is oddly sold out. How would you adjust the recipe for pearled barley?
I used pearl barley and the cooking time and liquid were the same as in the recipe for me.
Delicious! Very similar flavor profile to Deb’s chicken with buttery onions recipe (not shocking but we love both!). I made it exactly as written and used the 10 min Whole Foods 365 farro. It came out perfectly with no adjustments to liquid or cooking time. The cheese is essential! Don’t skimp on a good quality Gruyère. Pairs perfectly with a tangy green salad and makes excellent leftovers for lunch.
100%. I think they are both giving mujaddara vibes for sure!
I am in love with the flavors of this dish. Will definitely make again. 😍
Really delicious! But I have some notes. I don’t like this trend of putting whole stems of herbs in then trying to fish them out after, they are almost impossible to find. Next time I will just add 1 TBsp of chopped fresh thyme or use 1 tsp of dried. Also, recipe took 2.5 hours total which seems unnecessarily long. Couldn’t find farro, used brown rice which took forever to cook. Next time I will cook wild rice on the stove while I brown the onions, add the garlic etc then the lentils with less broth and cook the lentils on the stove top in the onion mixture. Then stir in the wild rice and finish under the broiler to melt the cheese. Should be done in an hour and still be very tasty.
Delicious!!! Everyone loved it. Thank you for sharing such amazing meals.
Delicious! I reduced the recipe by about one-third since I didn’t want a huge amount leftover, so I used about 1 cup farro, 1/2 cup brown lentils and 4 cups broth but kept the amount of onions about the same :) I used a vegetarian mushroom based broth which I think enhanced the ‘french onion soup’ vibes. I also subbed emmenthal for the gruyere since it’s cheaper but it didn’t melt very well (stayed kind of hard and almost crunchy on top) but maybe thats because I made and cooked everything in advance and then added the cheese and put it under the broiler before serving. Like others, I had to cook it a bit longer to soften the lentils and farro (about 60 mins) so my filling wasn’t liquidy by the end but I liked it that way as more of a casserole.
This was amazing – rich and hearty and perfect for a winter supper. I wondered (afterwards) about cooking it stove-top for the entire time (except for the broiling of the cheese). I ended up taking the lid off my casserole to allow extra liquid to cook off at the end.
Perfect cold evening food! Thank you. Comes together much faster when you happen to have frozen some caramelised onions; then it’s a very easy weeknight meal. I made it with barley as it’s hard (impossible? would love pointers) to find farro in the UK.
Made it for dinner last night! It is absolutely delicious! Made full recipe for two of us so we’ll be enjoying it for another dinner and a lunch or two! Don’t skip the cheese it really takes it up a notch! Thanx Deb!
This is cozy and delicious! I also used the trader joe’s 10 minute farro – I added the lentils and 3 cups of broth, cooked in the oven for 25 min, and then added the farro and 2 more cups of broth, and cooked for another ~20 minutes before adding cheese and broiling. I knew I wanted a firmer set, there was minimal liquid left in the bottom of the pan after this approach. For me the salt in the onions and the broth (I used Better than Bouillon in mushroom flavor) was perfect for the final dish, and I wouldn’t add any additional salt at other points. The sherry/wine truly is optional because I straight forgot to add it, and didn’t mind at all.
I made this last night and it ROCKS! Made a half batch, used combo of water and chicken stock, white wine splash, genuine Gruyere. Wow! Husband and I licked our bowls clean. Thank you so much for this trifecta (farro-lentils-onion soupiness).
This was delicious!
I had to make a couple of adjustments due to my own inept shopping – I didn’t realize that the bag of farro I had purchased from Whole Foods was only about 250 grams (not the 300 the recipe calls for) until I was ready to make dinner. It was also 10 minute farro. So after reading the comments on what others had done with 10 minute farro, I reduced the liquid to a little over 5 cups (to account for the lower amount of farro) and added the farro during the last 15 – 20 minutes of cooking. I had Le Puy lentils and used them in the amount called for in the recipe.
It was fantastic, and we all agreed it is going into the “make again” category at our house. I think my husband went back for fourths! The leftovers were delicious reheated as well. I don’t typically love lentils, but I could eat them like this multiple times a week. Thank you for another great recipe!
I prepped early in the day by following the recipe up until the oven part! We’ll see how it turns out after farro and lentils soaked all day!
Totally slammin’. I can never seem to get onions to fully caramelize under an hour, but otherwise this recipe worked perfectly.
This was phenomenal and surprisingly unfussy! We were still enjoying it on day 3 of eating it. It helped get us out of a cooking rut.
I’m a vegetarian married to a recovering carnivore. He frequently laments the frequency of lentils in our house and was noticeably skeptical when I told him what I was making tonight. We BOTH loved this dish. Perfect food for a cold and rainy night.
I made this 2 nights ago and my husband fought over the leftovers yesterday. I’m putting it in the top 10 things I’ve ever eaten. Really great comfort food. My sister had a bit last night and kept saying, “it’s so good” and “what’s in this?”.
Made this last night with and served with a simple arugula salad. Did not make any changes or substitutions. Delicious! And so nutritious. I think I will keep a batch of caramelized onions in the fridge just so I can make it quickly when the craving strikes.
Also love the idea of a fried egg on top. Will do that for the leftovers!!
Do you use Morton Kosher salt or Diamond?
Thank you for answering the question about the size of pan used here for this delicious dish. I really wish cooks would routinely include information about the size of pan used in a recipe.
I use Diamond salt. More here about how to swap: not all salts are created equally
This is possibly my all time favorite recipe from Smitten Kitchen. I’ve made it twice in two weeks, and it halves perfectly for a household of one (I kept the amount of caramelized onions the same—would recommend). I’m often not a fan of Gruyère so I subbed sharp cheddar and the end result was perfect for my tastes. So glad to have found and made this recipe! Thank you, Deb!
Just took this out from under the broiler – can’t wait to try it. Made exactly as written (except for fishing out the thyme – oops 😬) even though I had to go to 4 different stores in 0°weather to find farro. Looks like another SK winner, thank you!!
I made this exactly as written except that I was short on farro so I only used 1 cup and reduced the broth by 1 cup. I used Parmesan broth because it was what I had on hand but I might go for beef broth next time just to keep it as French onion soupy as possible. This was really delicious and felt really virtuous despite all the cheese. Between the two of us we ate half the pan in one sitting.
This was good, but I think the caramelized onions would come through more if You used 1 cup of farro ( and decreased stock)
Yum!!! This was such a nice, comforting winter meal. The clincher: my 4yo ate every bite. We’ll definitely make it part of our regular rotation. I’m not sure if I didn’t cook off enough liquid from the onions or what. But the lentils and farro were a little musher than I’d like. So next time I’ll start with less broth and add more when if/needed.
Made this last night with Trader Joe’s 10 minute farro (whole little blue bag, because it wasn’t worth saving the last bit in the cupboard) and Trader Joe’s green lentils. I did not adjust the cook time or any other part of the recipe. It was delicious. *chef’s kiss* No issue with the extra cook time for the farro and all fluid was absorbed. Not the prettiest of dishes, but it’s a winner and will be going into regular rotation. Thank, Deb for your fabulous recipes. You’ve been my go-to source for recipes for at least a decade.
In the canon of legumes disguised as things my kids love to eat (pizza beans, BBQ chickpeas), this was another success! We substituted Jarlsberg for the Gruyere. My husband was so impressed that he asked if you’ll do Baconator beans next, hahaha!
This was SO good and felt so decadent! I think all ski lodges should put that on their menu!! Next time or with guests, I would portion the dish in individual onion soup bowls just before adding the cheese and broiing – facilitating the resuscitation of leftovers!
Thanks so much for this amazing and comforting meat free dish!
This is crazy good. Made it last night for a side dish at a family dinner and got race reviews. I’m already thinking I want it again in the hear future. Thank you, Deb, and Elizabeth from Oakland.
*rave* reviews
Made this and it was excellent!! I have a variety of lentils (red, green, brown, black) but decided to go with black lentils as I like how they hold their shape (and sometimes the kids are more willing to eat these vs other lentils because not quite so much mush) and it turned out great!
Question about technique: why bake in the oven vs simmer on the stove?
I was thinking a future variation I might try would be to actually make this a soup (the farro and lentils would make it a more substantial version of French onion soup): add more broth then ladle in to individual crocks and top with a slice of French bread and Gruyère then broil.
This was amazing!!! It satisfied my French onion soup craving but was less messy to eat. So satisfyingly good. And my 19 month old had three servings of it!!
Has anyone made this in an Instant Pot or pressure cooker? We’re at 7200 feet altitude and the lentils and farro will never cook without pressure. Curious about timing and if you reduced the liquid. Thanks!
This was one of the best things I’ve eaten in a while. I followed recipe exactly and it was perfect. Next time, I may add roasted mushrooms before the cheese to broil. I am a runner and this lunchtime meal was so satisfying and filling before a long run. Thank you!
Tried this tonight (perfect for a January night) and cut it in half because I suspected I’d be the only one eating it. Still plenty of leftovers. I used my lodge cast iron skillet and then the toaster oven and it worked out great. I didn’t have farro and needed to use up some barley so I swapped it 1:1 but otherwise followed the directions as written. I think next time I’d let it cook for longer as the lentils and grains were still a bit hard. I’ve NeVeR been able to get the consistency of lentils right, so it’s par for the course. Thanks for recipe, Ms. Kitten!
I made this last night, with “black lentils” from the grocery store, and it was really good! I was short 40 grams of farro, so I added an extra 40 grams of lentils, and that seemed to work just fine. Also swapped in a sprig of rosemary because I didn’t have thyme. Otherwise, as written. Delicious!
This turned out well. I used short-grain brown rice as you suggested for a gluten-free substitution. The liquid content was totally fine. I would have done 1t of salt rather than 2 and we loved every bite of it. Lots and lots of leftovers.
This was okay. Not great. I really wanted it to be great. I was expecting it to be, too, so I was a little sad that it didn’t end up that way. I used short grain brown rice (as you’d suggested in the comments) to make it gluten free but kept all other ingredients the same. I also found the cooking time for the onions to be off. I consider myself an accomplished home cook and I’ve made French onion soup from scratch numerous times so when I saw the cooking directions called for ~50 minutes of onion cook time I was a little doubtful but figured I’d follow exactly as written and see what came of it. I used (like I always do) a heavy bottomed stainless braiser and a high powered burner, but after an hour of cooking the onions (according to the recipe- I triple checked) the onions had not become nearly caramelized. I cooked for another 30 minutes, so 50% more than the recipe called for (all the time I could spare on a weekday evening! Typically when I caramelize onions for French onion soup it takes a good two and a half hours) and went on with the recipe. The final product was okay, but not loved by any of us. I’m sure it would have been different if the onions had had time to caramelize fully.
That’s actually really odd that you had those results. My onions started browning at around the 30 minute mark and were fully caramelized by the 45 minute mark. I used a 12″ seasoned cast iron pan and the onions AND end result both came out perfectly and legitimately tasted exactly like french onion soup (one of my favorite things on this planet). Maybe your onions weren’t sliced thinly enough?
Agree, that’s odd. Mine were fully caramelized in the time called for too.
Jen: No, I used a 1/8 in. setting on my mandoline for slicing. Like I said, I’ve been making French onion soup for at least 15 years. Short of using sugar or Vidalia sweet onions (neither of which I do) to speed up the cooking time by hastening the maillard reaction, it’s always taken a lot more time.
The timing worked for me but I had cut the recipe in half. If there were twice as many onions in the pan, I think it would have taken me longer
Great recipe but proves the maxim that nobody waits long enough to caramelize onions. fifty minutes is not enough for the onions, especially given how many there are. I could see that stage lasting a solid 90 minutes.
You really have to commit to getting the onions caramelized or they will be lost in the heartier flavors of the recipe. I got impatient and proceeded before they were truly browned. So the meal was really nice but didn’t have much onion flavor at all.
I suppose an alternative would be to just soften the onions for ten minutes. Different flavor but will still go great with the other ingredients.
I added some tomato sauce instead of the 2-3 cups of veggie broth near the end, that was pretty great.
Counter-intuitive, but you can hurry along the onions by adding a splash of water initially and covering the pan. The onions soften sooner in the steam.
I think you might be referencing this new-ish technique from Cook’s Illustrated. I haven’t tried it here yet but it looks worth checking out.
This is utterly delicious. Made exactly as directed but with beef vs veggie broth b/c it’s what I had. Even better reheated the next day. So comforting and tasty.
I had high hopes based on other comments but found the final dish to be bland and mushy. I love the crispy-chewy texture of onions in mujaddara and really missed the contrast here. Similarly, I take the time for homemade broth in french onion soup and the Better than Bouillon I used here doesn’t compare.
Where is Better than Bouillon mentioned in this recipe…?
It’s what I used for the vegetable broth.
Well, yeah. Of course it doesn’t compare.
The recipe just calls for veg broth — is it really worth making homemade veg broth versus store bought? Would be different if recipe called for chicken or beef stock.
I mean i just used College Inn vegetable broth. Nothing special. But the dish still tasted incredible. And the leftovers?? Forget about it… so dang good!
Delicious! I halved her recipe, following her weights and not cups. I added a box of spinach before putting in the farro, otherwise followed the instructions. Tastes so indulgent considering it’s all whole, nutritious food! Will definitely be a staple in my winter lunch rotation.
This was so good! Broiling greuyere smells amazing. We love mujadarrah, and this is similar but the farro and cheese make it different in a wonderful way!
I made this tonight and it was AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS!! So simple (albeit time-consuming ) yet such deep flavors. I used short-grain brown rice as Deb suggested in the comments to make it gluten-free and it was perfect…possibly could use only 5 cups of broth instead of 6 but 6 works if bake 50-60 minutes. Will definitely be making this again!
I halved this and made it in my 10″ cast iron and it was phenomenal! I toasted some slices of bread under the broiler with it too
Oh my this was delicious. Though it takes a long time, it’s quite easy – most of the cooking is hands-off and once you’ve sliced the onions it’s essentially an assembly job. Filling and nutritious too! This will be in the regular rotation.
OMG – One bite and this recipe immediately moved into my top 5 favorite Smitten Kitchen recipes! SOOOOO yummy! THANK YOU FOR THIS DELICIOUS RECIPE!
Oh my, this was tasty. I was concerned the dish would be flavourless, but I was wrong. A few well-handled, simple ingredients can be incredible. Thanks for the recipe!
Perfect winter comfort dish (although I will be tempted to make it all year long), esp. for french onion soup fans. Caramelizing took longer for me (always does), but I knew it would and it was worth it. My husband and I liked it better on subsequent days–I think b/c we enjoyed having a bit more texture. Used barley because I didn’t have farro and it was excellent. I think I love this as much as the squash toasts(!!!!), possibly my favorite SK winter comfort recipe.
This is amazing – I made it per instructions but I added some chicken pieces in to make it a one pot meal as the temp/timing seemed right. It worked and was really good but one thing I’ll do next time is reduce the liquid, the chicken gave off some liquid that I then had to evaporate. I pulled the chicken before adding the cheese and boiling. So good!
I was excited to make this and based on the comments, was pretty sure I’d love it like I love most of Deb’s recipes, but sadly, that was not the case. I didn’t like it even enough to keep the leftovers.
There were two main issues – it was waaaay too salty (which, to be fair, could be due to the broth I used, Better Than Bouillon, which is quite salty), and perhaps worse, it tasted nothing like French onion soup. Despite using just over 2 pounds of onions, there wasn’t a strong onion taste to it. I liked the texture the farro gave it (my husband said it had a nicely meaty texture), but that’s about the best I can say for it.
You’re actually the second person (that I’ve seen) who made this using better than boullion and didn’t like it. I wonder if that had anything to do with it because I (like many others) used vegetable stock and it tasted exactly like French onion soup and was incredible.
Mine had a wonderful strong taste of onion. I used a 4 cup box of vegetable broth and 2 cups of low sodium BTB broth. You can get the low sodium version on line. Here in Eastern Massachusetts the low sodium version is not available in grocery stores.
I made this for supper tonight. Absolutely freaking wonderful!
Made this as written for supper tonight and Oh Em Gee! What a fabulous dish! This is going in the rotation. I’m a huge fan of French Onion Soup and I like this so. much. better. Thanks for yet another dish that is going in my regular rotation, Jen. You are the queen.
I mean Deb, not Jen! I was swooning on deliciousness… :O Also, I’m in the RG Bean Club and this has been making the rounds. You are a constant source of inspiration. Thanks for so many, many bean-friendly recipes. You are the queen!
This was magically delicious and will go into my chilly weather rotation. Also looking forward to trying the feta and tomato version.
Recipe worked for me exactly as written.
Delicious!
Invited to dinner and this was the meal.
(and the cheeeeese pull😉)
I finally made this tonight (a cold and rainy Saturday which has been dreary all day, after having it on my menu for like 2 weeks) and oh my God, it’s so good. SO good, and I say this as someone who is “meh” on French onion soup. So warm, so filling, so deliciously cheesy. I could eat the entire casserole dish in one go.
I did not broil the cheese because I didn’t realize until I was about to put it in the casserole dish that my dish said “no broiler,” so I just added the cheese at the end and let it melt for 5-6 minutes at 375. It was still divine.
I also made my life way easier by slicing all my onions earlier this week and freezing them. It did bump up that initial cooking time to about 30 minutes (instead of 15-20) since I had to wait for the onions to defrost and there was a lot more liquid, but I did not have to spend 20 minutes slicing onions and wiping away tears before cooking. XD
I’m looking forward to all my leftovers for the next few days. Maybe next time I’ll get some nice thick toast to go on the side…
Update: dug some French bread slices out of the freezer and toasted them to eat with my leftovers. A+ would highly recommend.
This was crazy good! I made a half batch for my hubby and I and the aroma in the kitchen was incredible. Loved the nuttiness of the farro and Gruyère, paired with the earthiness of the lentils. Other than halving the recipe, made exactly per recipe and even the hubs asked for this to be added into rotation as a favorite. Thank you!
I used Manzanilla sherry for my dish. I thought it tasted exactly like french onion soup. I was afraid of oversalting it so I did not add any. I followeded all the cooking methods suggested. I could not get my onions to be as caramelized as I would have liked after an hour of cooking but I had to say “good enough.” I was using the biggest pan I had to distribute heat to the onions. Also, i feel recipe does not recipe does not factor in prep time for the onions. I let mine in for 40 minutes and added a splash of broth prior to adding cheese. I let mine rest for a few minutes after taking out of the oven so the cheese wouldn’t destroy my mouth. So if you make this, i would suggest leaving yourself up to 3 hours to prepare.
I made this three times in the past three weeks using all but one of the ingredients.
I substituted Mirin (Japanese cooking rice wine) for Sherry and the instant it hit the pan with the onions it smells like the vegetable broth/stock is already in there… it’s amazing.
Thyme. We strip the thyme from the stems and put them in when baking.
I forgot it once. Trust me, the Thyme makes the dish. It is still good just nowhere nearly as good as with it.
Never forget the Thyme.
Also, there is no need to broil if you can put the pan on the top rack of the oven.
No one in my family is remotely tired of this dish.
This recipe is going viral this week in my Rancho Gordo bean club. This recipe is outstanding. Used my RG puglia lentils. Took a few extra minutes in the oven. If you are even thinking about this recipe, just do it!
Hi! This was so delicious, and I couldn’t stop eating it. I didn’t have farro and used bulgur in place, and it turned out lovely and risotto-like. I think next time I might try 1 cup of de puy lentils, maybe thicken it just ever so slightly. A real winner, and totally comforting on this sunny but chilly, Eastern Ontario day.
Perfect as is!!! Onions so flavorful with amazing umami. Makes this pretty healthy dish feel decedent ❤️ Will but this into our families rotation
Delish! Made tonight and added some homemade garlic/herb croutons on top before adding the cheese. Super hearty and delish. Everyone loved the flavor and all the contrasting textures in the dish. Will make again for sure.
Absolutely loved this dish. I wouldn’t change a thing. It was so rich, delicious and satisfying. There’s only 2 of us so I cut the ingredients in half… we still have enough leftovers for 2 more meals. When I saw how much it made I transferred half into a smaller casserole and only put cheese on that portion. The rest went into the fridge and when I serve it again I’ll reheat and add the grated cheese to broil.
Made this tonight and it was DELICIOUS. The onions took a really long time to cook down but my house smelled wonderful and it was worth the wait. Great recipe.
This was AMAZING! Kids ate seconds. I made some modifications based upon what I had:
1cup Farro, .5cup pearled barley
Cheddar cheese on top.
My kids absolutely loved it. It was filling and delicious! Would make a fabulous side dish for any type of meat main (crispy chicken, steak. Etc.) Planning to reuse leftovers for something….maybe Crack an egg on top?
I made this last weekend and we loved it! Baked up in a casserole it came out like a pilaf. I used Mikoyos vegan liquid mozzarella as we trying to cut back on animal products and broiled it after we put it on — I’m sure it wasn’t as yummy as gruyere (what is?) but it worked for us. Keep ’em coming!
This is delicious. Such a terrific dish for a cold winter night. I didn’t need to add more broth during the initial cooking, but I added a bit – about 1/4 cup – when I reheated the leftovers. I happened to have some Italian lentils and I liked the toothiness of them. Another winner! Thanks.
Delicious made as directed with the exception of using about 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme instead of fresh. This recipe feels riffable like many SK classics in that you could mix it up with the grains/rice and lentils. (My next experiment: buckwheat groats.) Two pounds of onions, caramelized, and gruyere on top can only be good as long as the grain-lentil mix is cooked through and well-seasoned. This is my favorite think about SK recipes: the flexibility of the base recipe idea. Another winner!
I eat gluten free which the farro doesn’t accommodate. Any idea if I can use quinoa?
This looks sooooo warming, comforting and delish. You’ve done it again! You’re a national treasure.
Ellie Krieger had a very similar recipe in the fall that seems more likely to be the inspiration for the commenter than a feta/tomato one. https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/french-onion-farro-bake/ Either way, looks delicious. Might try with rice as suggested to make it GF.
This was SO good. Our 7 and 4 year old both loved it as well. It is time consuming but so worth it. Will be a go-to recipe for our family for sure.
I made this with mung beans instead of lentils (all that was in the cupboard) and it was delicious. I’d like to serve it at a brunch but one of the guests has a severe garlic allergy. Will it be as tasty without? Or is there something I can substitute instead?
In your pictures, is the top right how brown the onions get or the bottom left one, is that how brown the onions should get? Or had you added some brown stuff to the bottom left picture (lentils, farro etc)? I tried clicking on the pictures to get your flickr feed like I used to get to see additional pictures to see but it didn’t work.
I google image searched carmelized onions and see they are dark brown, so probably your bottom left picture is how they should look.
Bottom left is how brown I got them.
There’s a NYT recipe for lentils and farro with jammy onions that is wonderful and has a different flavor profile (lemony!) but it’s clear these three ingredients belong together. Can’t wait to make this, it will check so many comfort food boxes while adding fiber and protein!! And Gruyère….cannot go wrong! Thank you!
Delicious even before adding the cheese. Used Fontina instead of Gruyère because that’s what I had on hand. Made 1/2 batch and it was enough for 2 with leftovers. Will definitely make again.
Yum!!! I made a quarter recipe with all the ingredients. I think the Sherry and gruyere are essential for the French Onion soup flavor. Will definitely share the recipe and make again!
As a newbie vegetarian, I’ve worried about having deeply comforting recipes that I used to make with meat. This recipe is SO good. It took me well over an hour to get the onions to the right caramelization, and I had to bake for about 70 minutes to reduce the liquid enough. Tip- I use a sautéed onion bouillon base to richen up my veg stock and a little extra wine. But this is a new favorite for me and my people.
This looks fantastic, and I’d like to make it, but I’m trying to figure out what to serve alongside… any thoughts?
We enjoyed it with a big salad.
Smitten Kitchen is my go to for great recipes and the best blog. This recipe looks just amazing. Usually I can figure out how I can make it Celiac friendly but I am at a loss to know what to do to sub out Farro… Quinoa or Buckwheat groats? Any suggestions so that the flavour and crunch won’t be lost.
I’d use a short-grain brown rice.
This dish was super simple and absolutely wonderful. Great feedback from a number of people. Outstanding recipe!
Do you have the cals and protein for this dish?
This is a great recipe overall—a short ingredient list, uncomplicated to prepare and wonderful flavors. For me, I thought the onions got a touch overshadowed by the lentils and farro. For some, that’s probably a good thing, but I was wanting more onions. Next time, I think I’ll increase the number of onions and halve the farro and lentils. The gruyere is wonderful! Thank you! I’m excited to try it again.
This was absolutely delicious! My 10 year old and I are both vegetarian and we both loved it. Will definitely make again :)
Absolutely delicious. Made as is and was blown away by the depth of flavor. The house smelled incredible too. As always when caramelizing onions, pushing them to a dark brown color is worth its weight in gold. Makes for a prettier dish as well. Bless Maillard! Bless Deb!
I’m usually gruyere-averse, but I’m glad I went with what other commenters recommended and used it anyway (instead of subbing like I usually do). It gave a really nice savoriness that I don’t think would have been there with cheddar, mozzarella or Swiss. I did buy a smaller wedge of gruyere (~6.5 oz), and did not feel like it needed more.
Delicious exactly as written! Absolutely worth caramelizing onions for.
I just made this… it is absolutely amazing both visually and texturally. A delicious meal, nice work!
This one’s amazing, exactly as written. First recipe in a while I felt like I had to immediately share with friends and family.
Deb, this is such a winner. You do not get enough credit as one of THE best home chefs that consistently delivers amazing often healthy and plant filled recipes on the regular. I made this with barley instead of farro and no other changes and had the time of my life I added a dollup of sour cream and all pain in my body and mind vanished. I own all of your cookbooks and check out your recipes regularly and you have made my life better. I recommend you and dorie greenspan on the same level to my friends for when i bake or cook something and get rave reviews – they are true never fail recipes thank you every day
i meant pearled barley not farro, was this review influenced by red wine, yes but the point stands
Oh my, this was very good! I made it as written except that I used Fontina cheese. I used brown lentils and white wine. Using a food processor to slice the onions made it faster and easier.
Could you specify what type of farro you use in the recipe? I just made this with traditional non-pearled farro and followed all directions precisely but it was still undercooked after over 2h in the oven. It may have worked with pearled, semi-pearled, or quick-cook farro (all of which are pretty common). But it didn’t work with Bob’s Red Mill non-pearled. Flavor was great though! I would try this again with a quicker cooking variety that would match the cooking time or the lentils.
I’m using semi-pearled farro, which I thought was pretty standard at the grocery store. I’m sorry to hear it gave you trouble. You can use if it you’d like next time, just start it sooner. If the package says it takes, say, 90 minutes to cook, just add it 45 minutes sooner.
this was so delicious and satisfying on a cold day that immediately i sent the recipe to at least three other people before realizing i had completely forgotten to use the cheese.
This is SO good! It’s delicious right out of the oven and is a great meal-prep lunch to take to work or school–it’s definitely going in my regular rotation! I live alone and halved the recipe but honestly could have eaten these leftovers all week. I made this as written but with 10 minute farro, and it still turned out great! The farro was on the soft side but it still had a bit of bite to it. 11/10, will make again!
All I can say is WOW! I don’t know what I expected but I wasn’t expecting such a savory rich dish. My partner has been trying to get me to make something with farro so this was the dish and it was so good and definitely on the rotation. It was super easy too. 😍😍😍🙌🙌🙌🙌
this was absolutely amazing! the only thing i added was a splash of white balsamic to the onions and served with some baby kale and maple-dijon vinaigrette. smashing! Thanks!
Made this tonight and it was super yummy. It is a commitment though – an hour to prep and another hour or so to bake (mostly hands off time which is nice, but still a two hour meal). It’s not super photogenic, and it took quite a bit of cajoling to get my 4 year old to try it, but my husband and I liked it! We both love French onion soup and as vegetarians, it’s hard to get that flavor without the beef. Probably not a weeknight meal I would add into the rotation too frequently but good for a cold winter night
Perfect for this week, can’t wait to try it!
A super tasty vegetarian dish indeed! To save a few calories, I mixed Gruyère with panko, the result is almost identical. And to add a little explosion of flavour, drizzle a few drops of really good truffle oil on top it when serving – a poem!
Delicious! Served with a side salad and crusty bread. Even my two 8 year-olds ate it with no complaints.
it’s good but I’m happy I halved the recipe. Would have made enough for a church picnic. Didn’t have purled farro so took 20-30 minutes longer in my oven.
If I used I swapped the lentil and farro volumes, would I need more, less or the same liquid?
This is the most fabulous and delicious thing I’ve ever had. Is so wonderful. I love love love the texture of the Farro. This is my new favorite recipe and one I will make on repeat for sure.
Would ryeberries be a suitable substitute for farro? I’ve got a packet, never opened! This looks so delicious and I’m looking forward to making it.
Yes, but check the cooking time — I believe it will be longer, so you’ll want to give them more time before adding the lentils.
This was so so good! I halved the recipe, since it was just the two of us, and it was the perfect amount for dinner, plus a little left over. I couldn’t find Gruyère , so I used regular Swiss, but it would’ve been even better with the Gruyère. Even with that substitution, it was so rich and satisfying. I made a kale salad for the side, & it was a lovely anniversary dinner.
Incredible recipe! I did as written but added 2 bay leaves. I used the Trader Joe’s 10 min farro but added it at the half way stir point. Not mushy at all! I also served it with salad as Deb suggested. Thanks for a great recipe!
I made this recipe tonight and it was so good! I used chicken broth because that’s what I had, and it tasted delicious.
The Rancho Gordo Bean Club is going wild for this recipe. It’s delicious.
I made this yesterday for me and my daughter (she is a 9 year-old vegetarian, and has hated about 75% of the thing I make). We loved it. For me, it is eyes-roll-back-in-the-head good. Thanks Deb!
I had some old puy lentils – had to sub in a bit more farro to make up the 3/4 cup. Having never bought farro before, we got it in bulk (pearled) and it worked fine. We were a little short on vegetable broth, so subbed in a little chicken broth. And no fresh thyme, so I used a big pinch of dried. Once in the oven, stirred after 15 minutes and it was ready after another 20. No additional liquid needed. Here in northern NH gruyere costs $10 for 8 oz, so this is kind of a splurge dish for us, but one we will certainly keep in rotation. Thank you for this recipe!
Savory. Flavor packed. Incredible. No other words can describe it. This recipe is a bit of a time commitment (took me a solid two hours), but SO WORTH IT. We had oven roasted chicken thighs alongside, but definitely not required. This recipe makes A LOT of servings, and the leftovers are even tastier. Definitely make it, you won’t be disappointed.
This was really good and super easy. Next time I will try with short grain brown rice and sprinkle generously with nutritional yeast. Also I’ve never carmelized onions before – so easy and delicious. Thank you!
Also – I added a big thing of broccoli rabe to include some greens in the dish. Next time would use something a bit less sharp.
My haiku:
I am still stirring.
Will my onions ever brown?
That is the question.
Great hearty winter dish; I needed to do an extra 10min on the onions. Saw some comments about lack of flavor – I think this is all about the vegetable broth you’re using. I used the standard grocery store box, but pre-simmered it on the stove with a teaspoon of veggie bouillon and another teaspoon of umami bouillon (mushroom). This added a rich deep flavor to the dish. Also based on comments I cut way back on the broth – only used one 4-cup container. Could probably have done an extra half cup, but no more. Popped a bunch of thyme in cheesecloth to make it easier to fish out. Great weekend meal!
this sounds delicious ,,, have enjoyed many of your recipes . coudl you give a nutritional break down please?
Nutrition Facts: 10 servings
Calories 571
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 36g 46%
Saturated Fat 16.6g 83%
Cholesterol 65mg 22%
Sodium 400mg 17%
Total Carbohydrate 49.8g 18%
Dietary Fiber 20g 71%
Total Sugars 2.1g
Protein 16.4g
Vitamin D 11mcg 56%
Calcium 1016mg 78%
Iron 51mg 284%
Potassium 579mg 12%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
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I made a gluten-free version of this with medium grain brown rice and small Italian brown lentils. It turned out very well, but I think I would change a few things next time: 1) more wine – I ended adding quite a bit more wine as it cooked to help amp up the French onion soup flavor. I think where the recipe calls for 30 ml, I added close to 200 ml. Deb suggests short grain brown rice, which I don’t have and am not sure where to get (I’m not living in the US). Instead, I think next time I will try it with just regular risotto rice to increase the creamy consistency, and I think half rice/half lentils would work well (for the gf version). Anyway, the takeaway is it can be done gluten-free and it’s very good!
I’ve made this two weekends in a row—it is soooooo good. The second time I made it for my brother and his wife, who is celiac, because I was under the [mistaken] impression that farro was gluten-free. Turns out it’s okay for gluten-sensitive folks but not for full-tilt celiacs. Do you have a substitution recommendation—something with the same chewy nuttiness of farro?
Made this today. It was excellent. I should have cooked down the onions for a couple more minutes, but it was really good.
One note: 300 grams of farro is a lot more than 1-½ cups. It’s probably closer to 3 cups. The 300 gram amount was the perfect amount of farro for this, though
Very tasty! I used wheat berries I already had cooked & reduced the amount of liquid. Honestly next time I think I’ll increase the amount of onion!
Deb, delicious and fun recipe, thank you! I’ve made it twice. The first time I went on the upper end of your cook time and the lentils broke down into a creamy base, and the second time I did the minimum cook time and the lentils stayed together but were still tender and delicious. The gruyere did release a lot of oil, I ended up blotting some of it off after broiling. I’m wondering if I didn’t it broil enough although I did get good browning like in the photo. I served with chopped fresh parsley, tarragon, and thyme on top which was delicious to balance out the rich dish. Leftovers were excellent. I’ll be keeping this one in my recipe rotation!
What is the nutritional breakdown of this recipie?
Carbs?
Protein?
Sorry, I just found it in the comments!
I made this as written, except I halved the recipe because it’s just me. I absolutely love it!
This was so amazing that I was sad it was gone. My 12 yo son was very skeptical, but he then asked for seconds and rated it an 8/10. We liked it so much, I made it about 3 weeks ago, but we’re having a guest over tonight and we both wanted it again! I also shared the recipe on Facebook and several of my veggie friends got very excited about it!
Made last night with red lentils and white rice (cleaning out pantry). Taste was fabulous!!! Even the two picky teenagers liked it!!!
Delicious and comforting! The only thing I would change next time is to add a splash of balsamic vinegar before adding the cheese and broiling, to brighten it up a little. Already looking forward to leftovers for lunches this week!
This is literally one of the yummiest things I’ve ever made.
This recipe sounds delicious and healthy too! Exactly what like, healthier versions of truly comforting recipes!
I have made this twice now. The first time I made it exactly as written with no substitutions or changes. The second time I used beef broth, dry sherry and added 2 bay leaves while it was simmering. We liked both versions but honestly preferred the one made with the beef broth and sherry better than vegetable broth and white wine version. The beef broth version seemed more true to the flavor profile of traditional French Onion Soup. Both times my onions caramelized in the specified time. This is delicious.
I thought this would be good but didn’t expect it to be SO GOOD. I followed the recipe except that I missed the step to bring to a boil before moving to the oven – it wasn’t an issue. The farro and lentils (we used French green) really complement each other well, both in flavor and texture.
Next time I might make the onions in advance to break up the prep and make it a little more doable as a weeknight meal. Once that’s done, it’s pretty hands off.
I’m woefully unprepared for this, but it looks so good! My big skillet is not ovenproof so I’ll have to transfer everything — will a 13 x 9 baking dish work? Also, how tightly should it be covered in the oven?
Thanks!
Wow. I thought this sounded good “for something reasonably healthy”, bought the ingredients a bit ago, and somehow never got motivated to make it. Made it tonight, and it really does have those French onion soup vibes. It’s delicious. I used Better than Bouillon vegetable base (which I’d do again), and will use a bit less salt next time.
Better than bouillon is great, but it is very salty.
6 cups of broth to 2 ¼ cups grain seems like a crazy high ratio. Mine came out very soupy, even after an extra 10 minutes uncovered in the oven.
This was excellent. I opted to do it on the stovetop (other than the broil) because I tend to prefer the control that affords. Reduced the liquid down to 5 cups, lid on at med-low for 20 minutes then lid off at med-high for another 20ish with regular stirring. Otherwise made it exactly as written and it’s delicious. Mujadara meets french onion soup, what’s not to love? I am wondering why you chose the oven here because if I understand that I may be braver lolll – is it just the hands-off-ness of it? Or is there some other benefit of the oven method? Also my partner said “I know it doesn’t NEED bread but imagine it with the martha stewart cubed bread topping between the lentils and the cheese?” and I think they might be a genius lol
Excellent! Made this exactly as written and it worked perfectly for me, including caramelizing the onions. I used better than bullion (veggie) for my broth. Served it with some bread and a French-inspired grated carrot salad with a mustard vinaigrette. This dinner feels like a treat.
Bravo! We thoroughly enjoyed this recipe. Thank you. I was short on time, sautéed onions and cooked in electric pressure cooker (12 minutes…reducing liquid slightly) transferred to oven safe dish and broiled.
Comment to commenters: It is my experience and it seems there is some science to soaking lentils first to reduce their tendency to cause gas in some people.
I look forward to serving this dish again to my family and guests.
Again, thank you.
This is one of the most delicious recipes I’ve tried in years. Soooo creative and delicious! Thank you!
Have made this several times now, it is delicious and makes the kitchen smell incredible! Love the chew of the farro. Add a crisp green salad with sharp vinaigrette for a marriage made in heaven. And as Deb said, reheats really well as leftovers. This dish is not a looker but who cares when it’s so dang yummy.
This was amazing!!! Thank you for sharing it!
Awesome, had no Farro so used quinoa and changed nothing except added more lentils as had a lot of folks to feed.
This was amazingly good. I love the flavor of French onion soup, but I’m not always a soup gal and this was perfection. Made the recipe as is (didn’t have sherry and used dried thyme) and it was fantastic. Looking forward to having the leftovers this week!
This was delicious! I downsized the recipe by half as there are just 2 of us and still have plenty for leftovers. I had caramelized onions in the freezer from our summer crop of Walla Wallas (I use most of them to make in crockpot -not really caramelized but so good) and used homemade chicken stock, so fairly easy to put together. I may add leftover chicken or pork to add a little more protein tonight. Wish I had some asparagus or other greens for a side dish! Another winner from Deb, thanks!