Monday, April 15, 2013

10 Ways with Swiss Chard

Swiss Chard is kinda a give-away around here.  I've been growing it for 4 years now. 3 of those years it was all from the same 3 plants.  It grew and grew and stopped in the summers, then grew and grew more.  I cut it back, it came back.  Finally last fall, I wanted it out.  My friend from Small Footprint Family, suggested we take it out and put in a crop just for the winter season.  So, she had seeds and she put some in.  Now, there are about 12 plants, and we're feeding everyone with it.  Lots and lots of beautiful rainbow chard.



Sadly, I will probably pull these out, cut up the leaves, blanch, and freeze for the winter.  I did put in a new row of seeds along my tomatoes so hopefully they will grow.  If not, we will start again in the fall.

We've tried some of these, and some are on our "to make" list.  If you have any recipes you make, please, leave a comment and share with us. 


  1. Sauteed  with onion and squeeze of lemon 
  2. Sauteed with fried or poached egg (for breakfast)
  3. Chard ravioli (use wanton wrappers for fast recipe), with ricotta and and pinch petter
  4. Saute with shallot, pinch of sugar (palm or brown), and belachan (shrimp paste)
  5. Cut into ribbons and added to dahl curry (yellow lentils with or without coconut milk)
  6. Substitute or mix with cabbage for colcannon recipe.
  7.  Cut into fine ribbons, stir fry on high heat with mix of turmeric, pinch salt, and handful of fresh grated coconut.  Mix till glossy and slightly wilted.
  8. Substitute for Kale in Caldo Verde recipe with andouille sausage
  9.  baby leaves in a salad with roasted beets and balsamic (with toasted walnuts or pecans)
  10. substitute for lettuce wraps and roll tight like and egg roll.

Bonus: cut into strips and use in spring rolls along with other items.

Hope you get to try some or share your recipes or tips with us!

Thanks!



Shared on: More the Merrier Mondays, Tuesdays with a Twistwildcrafting wednesday, simple lives thursdays, HomeAcre Hop,  Back to Basics, small footprint family, fresh eggs daily, Transformation Thursday, Thrifty Home Fresh Bites Friday, Wednesday Fresh Food Sunday Parenting Party, hip homeschool moms,  Living Green Tuesday, Montessori Monday,  Food Renegade, Eat Make Grow, Kids in the Kitchen, Learning for Life, Mums Make Lists

9 comments:

  1. Sadly I am the only member of my house that loves swiss chard. I can't understand it because husband and kids love greens- even bitter ones like chicory. The only way I can serve it -without listening to comments :) - is to dice it up small enough they can't recognize it. I like the idea of ravioli- they wouldn't be able to see it!

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    1. Greens are hit and miss with the kids around here as well. They love it, they hate it, who knows. So, I just make it and try to get them to eat it when they are up to it. Yesterday, I cooked some chard and beet greens in the brown bits from the same pan as the roast beef, and they wanted more and more. My philosophy is to make it and if they see us eating it at least they will be accustomed to it being a part of all meals.
      Here's the link to the roast: http://homegrownurban.blogspot.com/2013/01/pressure-cooker-roast.html

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  2. We love Swiss Chard but sometimes enough is enough and it goes in the freezer.
    Would you consider sharing this at Tuesdays with a Twist? (no rules)

    http://back2basichealth.blogspot.com/2013/04/tuesdays-with-twist-2-lets-party.html

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  3. Sounds delicious, and it's such a pretty plant. Thank you for linking up at Wildcrafting Wednesday!

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  4. We love Swiss chard! I have some of the rhubarb variety coming along right now in our garden. Thank you for sharing at the HomeAcre Hop! Look forward to seeing you again tomorrow morning: http://blackfoxhomestead.com/the-homeacre-hop/

    ~Jenny

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  5. Hello darling!

    I'm including this post in my monthly feature wrap up for the Wednesday Fresh Foods Link Up - hope to see you there!

    xo, kristy

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Kristy! Hope to have something new to post by then :)

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  6. Great ideas! I always struggle with how to get greens into my diet without it always being a salad. I'll have to give some of these a try. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. Pasties are always a winner.

    Liking your new blog btw - have been thinking about switching to wordpress myself - how do you handle the old posts? Did you transfer it all over?Click Here

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