Gardening/ Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

Swiss Chard From My Garden

This photo was taken about a week 1/2 ago.  You would not believe the size of the swiss chard leaves now!  I have been very pleased with how fast and easy it is to grow swiss chard.  I’ve enjoyed it raw, cut up in a salad,(using the lettuce pictured above), and just recently I learned how to cook it.  

 I scoured the internet looking for ways to cook swiss chard.  I have heard stories of swiss chard tasting bitter once cooked, so I was skeptical that I would like it, much less my kids!
I found a recipe at Simply Recipes,  (recipe below). It caught my eye because it was simple and easy to prepare, plus the author had this to say about it:
” I never liked Swiss chard, until several years ago I had some that had been freshly picked from a friend’s garden. It was so sweet and buttery I couldn’t believe it was actually Swiss chard. It was then I learned that freshness was the key determinant to whether chard was delectable or detestable.”  


“Sweet” and “butter” is all I had to hear to get motivated to cook up these garden greens.  

I think swiss chard is such a beautiful vegetable!  The stalks come in different colors and the leaves are such an amazing bright green.   The stalks remind me of celery, but a bit more bitter.  I didn’t care for the stalks, but I liked looking at them!
These nine, good sized leaves cooked down to one palm sized serving of chard.  I was flabbergasted!  Guess I need to plant more next year!  Can you imagine the content of vitamins and antioxidants in that one palm full of cooked chard??  Impressive.
Nutritional Profile
Swiss chard is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, manganese, potassium, iron, vitamin E and dietary fiber. It is a very good source of copper, calcium, vitamin B2, vitamin B6 and protein. In addition, Swiss chard is a good source of phosphorus, vitamin B1, zinc, folate, biotin, niacin and pantothenic acid.
Here is the palm full of the finished product.  I loved it.  It was mild, sweet and buttery.  I told my girls that I made it for me, but I would let them have a taste.  They skeptically tried a small bite, and within seconds I had 2 (my oldest one was not into the texture) little bird mouth hanging open for more bites. Now that excites me!

Funky Junk's Saturday Nite Special

Here is the recipe:










Swiss Chard Recipe

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 large bunch of fresh Swiss chard
  • 1 small clove garlic, sliced
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 Tbsp water
  • Pinch of dried crushed red pepper
  • 1 teaspoon butter
  • Salt

METHOD

1 Rinse out the Swiss chard leaves thoroughly. Remove the toughest third of the stalk, discard or save for another recipe (such as this Swiss chard ribs with cream and pasta). Roughly chop the leaves into inch-wide strips.
2 Heat a saucepan on a medium heat setting, add olive oil, a few small slices of garlic and the crushed red pepper. Sauté for about a minute. Add the chopped Swiss chard leaves. Cover. Check after about 5 minutes. If it looks dry, add a couple tablespoons of water. Flip the leaves over in the pan, so that what was on the bottom, is now on the top. Cover again. Check for doneness after another 5 minutes (remove a piece and taste it). Add salt to taste, and a small amount of butter. Remove the swiss chard to a serving dish.

This post is linked to:
Made It Monday @ The Persimmon Perch
Just Something I Whipped Up @ The Girl Creative
Making The World Cuter Monday @ Making The World Cuter
Tasty Tuesdays @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam

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  • littlethings1
    May 29, 2010 at 2:48 pm

    Looks wonderful ! I am going to grow some in my garden , my mother use to grow it ! Thanks for sharing !
    Eunice

  • The Local Cook
    May 25, 2010 at 11:09 pm

    I am SO in love with Swiss Chard! Stopping by from Tasty Tuesday.

  • UKZoe
    May 25, 2010 at 1:56 pm

    I need to plant some chard, I have a packet of seeds for the rainbow chard so you get red, yellow and orange stems and some white ones too.

  • Our Lives
    May 25, 2010 at 2:37 am

    Amy, I just cooked the chard and ate them all! My little Peter (2 year-old) loves it too. I think I will stir-fry this veggie more often now that it has become our family’s new favorite. I used our “best Irish butter” and it tasted delicious. I would put less sea salt or maybe skip it entirely the next time…
    Thanks again for sharing!!! ♥ Jenny

  • Stephanie Lynn
    May 23, 2010 at 11:53 pm

    Wow that looks fabulous! I would love this in salads! Thanks for sharing the info! Hope you had a wonderful weekend! ~ Stephanie Lynn

  • Josh and Dana
    May 23, 2010 at 5:31 pm

    First things first: LOVE your blog. I’ve been reading for a few months now but have never commented. This post brought me out of lurk-ville because I’ve only had swiss chard once and it was because I saw this recipe in Real Simple. It was SO good and this post totally made me want to make it again. Thanks for the inspiration!

    http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/swiss-chard-chickpeas-couscous-10000001583602/index.html

  • Lisa
    May 23, 2010 at 12:57 am

    Amy, I attached this link for White Beans w/Swiss Chard and Rice. I made it a while back and it’s excellent. Sounds like you’ll have lots of chard this summer, so give this one a try. It’s a keeper!

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/25/health/nutrition/25recipehealth.html

  • Theresa @ 612Riverside
    May 23, 2010 at 2:43 am

    I have been following your blog for a short while now and I gotta say you have got some wonderful ideas! I have never had swiss chard before, but then I had never put cow manure compost in my planters before now had I ever made my own laundry soap before but you have me doing those and looking up more of your wonderful ideas! Thanks! I told everyone about you in my last post, I loved making my own laundry soap and just needed to pass that on to anyone that would listen, and my son loved taking a container back home with him to share with his roommates! I’ll be back soon and often, Theresa

  • Debilou~Mississippi Mama
    May 23, 2010 at 2:01 am

    i just saw this in the grocery store and didnt have a clue what to do with it,, thanks for sharing will definitely have to try it now.

  • Sienna
    May 22, 2010 at 3:38 pm

    Yum… I love swiss chard. Your blog is beautiful. I love the layout. I am following you back.

  • Cathy M~(checkitoff)
    May 22, 2010 at 12:07 am

    my mom used to make swiss chard & she used to put vinegar on it~does that sound weird? your looks yummy! stop by my blog for an award for you!!

  • elizabeth @ twelvecrafts
    May 22, 2010 at 3:29 am

    Looks like a great recipe! Thanks for passing it on.

  • Amy
    May 21, 2010 at 11:18 pm

    Beautiful!

  • brookie
    May 21, 2010 at 9:47 pm

    Let the grand harvest begin! Isn’t this gardening thing fun?

  • jen
    May 21, 2010 at 8:49 pm

    I have some in my garden that is Huge! Sunday dinner–we have a winner. Thanks.

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