14 Ways to Use Chard

We have noticed that people tend to overlook chard (Swiss Chard) at the farmers market.  We love chard and think it is seriously under-rated.  It is a staple vegetable for a market gardener because it grows so easily and has a long growing season.  It is just as versatile as spinach in cooking, which means it can be used in a wide variety of ways.  Although chard is not as high in iron or calcium as spinach, it is a great source of vitamins A, K and C, as well as dietary fibre and antioxidants.  

Here are 14 ways we are using all that delicious chard in our kitchen.  Hopefully this list can offer some new ideas to you:

• chard pesto (with nuts, garlic and nutritional yeast/parmesan)
• chard frittatta (with eggs and potatoes)
• chard phyllo (with feta or ricotta, plus eggs)
  
• chard stir-fry (with tofu and carrots)
• chard egg scramble (with eggs and basil)
• chard with paneer (with garlic, curry and paneer cheese)
• chard green smoothie (with bananas and fruit, remove chard stems)
• chard bake (with zucchini, garlic and herbs)
• chard leaf rolls (leaves stuffed like cabbage rolls with rice and herbs/spices)
• chard and lentil pie (in a rustic pie crust)
• chard shakshuka (with tomatoes and eggs)
• chard potato cakes (with onions, herbs and yogurt sauce)
• chard soup (pureed)
• chard pasta (chard made into a creamy sauce over pasta)

Plus chard can be made into sweet cakes or tarts. Yes!  There are old recipes for this from the south of France.  Not so strange when you consider we commonly eat other vegetables in desserts, like carrot cake, beet brownies, zucchini loaf, sweet potato pie, pumpkin pie, avocado pudding, and so forth!  So, enjoy your chard this week!