Leek, tomato and farro soup with pancetta from Dinner: Changing the Game (page 319) by Melissa Clark

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Accompaniments: Sardine crostini with seared tomatoes; Simplest green salad

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • bernalgirl on April 30, 2026

    I generally followed this recipe, although soup is a fridge clean-out opportunity and I added 1/2 cup chopped cauliflower And 1.5 c chopped spinach, as well as a pinch of chile flakes and 1 t smoked paprika based on previous comments. It was good, but not something I’m likely to make again.

  • Plumberful on February 11, 2026

    This soup is very satisfying and it’s made with ingredients that I nearly always have on hand. I used canned San Marzano-style tomatoes, and cut them up in the can. I like the richer sauce and flavor. I added water and chicken stock until it was the consistency I wanted. This was very good and very simple to make.

  • annie_mfqcpw on February 02, 2026

    Loved this! Used fire-roasted tomatoes and added chicken stock.

  • chawkins on April 16, 2018

    I would not have made this had I not had a leek and some pancetta that needed to be used. How on earth do you expect to cook one and a half cup of farro in the juice of a 28 oz can of diced tomatoes? It tasted good after I made some changes based on what I had on hand and previous comments. I upped the amount of carrots and celery since I only had one leek. Added about 2-3 oz of prosciutto since I only have 4 oz of pancetta. Added 4 cups of chicken broth and only used 1 c of TJ’s 10 min farro. It was soup when served, but tomorrow it will probably be the consistency of risotto. ETA: it remained soupy the next day.

  • sosayi on January 19, 2018

    I'd agree with past reviews that this is nothing like a "stew" in my mind and that I also needed to add a fair amount of water to have the farro cook through (maybe 2 cups?). BUT. The final flavors of the bowl (which was more like a risotto), were phenomenal. I followed amounts of everything else exactly, only adding in a parmesan rind to the pot. Very warm and comforting and I'd certainly make it again. In fact, I'm devastated that the leftovers went to the husband and not me. Sigh.

  • Emily Hope on March 29, 2017

    I suppose this goes without saying, but I'd only make this soup with a pancetta that you really like, as the flavor of it really permeates the dish. We used a Fra' Mani pancetta that was a bit too funky, and I wish we'd used something else, or reduced the quantity. The soup itself is solid, if not amazing--a nice winter stewy-type of soup, as she says in the headnote. I used a 4-cup bag of frozen tomato puree from the summer, which worked well. However, I only used about 3/4 cup of farro (all we had in the house), and I still ended up needing a couple of cups of additional water to thin it out (she mentions in the headnote you might need some)--if you were making it with 1 1/2 cups of farro as the recipe calls for, I'd imagine you'd definitely need the extra water, unless you like your soup super-thick.

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