Lay a large piece of foil on a rimmed baking sheet, leaving half the foil hanging off one end. Place the beets on top of the foil on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the beets with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Fold the foil in half to make a packet and crimp the edges.
Bake until the beets are tender, about 40 to 50 minutes, depending on the size of the beets). You can check by piercing a fork through the foil, and see when they are tender.
Let them cool in the foil packets.
When the beets are cool enough to touch, remove them from the packet and peel off the skins. Dice the beets into 1/2-inch cubes and set aside.
Heat the vegetable broth in a medium sized saucepan just until hot. Meanwhile, in a large heavy saucepan or Dutch oven heat 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium heat until melted. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes until soft and lightly golden. Add the farro to the pot with the onions, and cook, stirring until all of the grains are nicely coated with the butter. Turn up the heat to medium-high, add the wine, bring it to a simmer, and cook, stirring frequently, until the wine is almost all absorbed. Add the stock one cup at a time, stirring every couple of minutes, and letting each cup of stock absorb almost completely before adding more. Adjust the heat as needed so that the liquid stays barely simmering. Taste towards the end to see when the grains are becoming cooked and tender (the farro should take about 30 to 35 minutes in all to cook, depending on how al dente or tender you like it to be), and season with salt and pepper as needed. You will likely not need to use all of the broth.
Just before the grains finish cooking, stir in the beets. When the grains and tender and the liquid is mostly absorbed stir in the cheese, remaining tablespoon of butter, the herbs, and the cream, if desired, and serve immediately, garnished with the Crispy Shallots.
Notes
What is Farro?
Farro is an ancient whole grain that can be used in everything from soups to casseroles to warm sides to room temperature salads. It’s a hearty wheat grain, with a chewy texture, and it’s a good source of iron, fiber and protein. Its nutritional value makes it an excellent grain to incorporate into all kinds of dishes, particularly for vegetarians. You can play around with it in recipes that might call for barley, wheat berries, or brown rice.