Rainbow Chard and Chicken pie

Swiss Chard is one of those Top 10 nutrient dense foods we had not tried in our family yet. Imagine my surprise when I got to the grocery store and saw this gorgeous Rainbow Chard!  I was in love right away.  The colors were so bright and pretty! Anyway- What I’ve learned about the Swiss Chard

• It’s season is from May-August.  Although with most produce these days you can get Swiss Chard all year long, however it tastes better and will be less expensive during May-Aug.
• When preparing your Chard, submerge the entire stalk and leaves in cold water to get the debris off.  Then dry with paper towels.
• Cut the stems away from the leaves.  Many people do not eat the stems.  You can eat both, but the stems need to be cooked longer than the leaves, so cutting them away makes this possible.

• Roll the leaves altogether and slice into thin strips.

• Swiss chard is the sweetest of all the leafy greens.
• If you don’t know how to use the leaves, use them much the same way you would spinach.

Here is how I cooked up our Swiss Chard!  It was super super super yummy! I hope you’ll try it ASAP! It got super approval from husband, neighbor, and semi-approval from children.

RAINBOW CHARD CHICKEN PIE

Prepare Swiss Chard by:

• Sautéing the chopped Chard stems in skillet with olive oil for 5 minutes.
• Add garlic and continue to sauté
• Add the leaves from the chard and sauté for another 3-4 minutes.
• Sprinkle salt over the entire mixture.
• Set aside.

Sprinkle and mix into swiss chard:

• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup cheddar cheese

Pour Swiss chard and cheese into prepared pie crust.  Then mix together separately:

• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk (mixed together)

Pour the eggs and milk over the greens.

I added chicken to the top of the greens. (optional)

Top with another pie crust.

     Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes, or until crust is cooked.

Readers also recommended these ways to cook Chard:

Beth.said Swiss chard is really good if you add it to soups, chopped up. It wilts a little, but still holds some shape. It’s part of the Olive Garden Zupa Tuscano soup recipe I have. But I’ve also heard you can saute it, like asparagus.

Marla said: Swiss Chard….toss it with some pasta & parm

Jeff   said: chard, cut away the center stem and cut to 1″ by 2″ or 3″ strips (they shrink during cooking). put in a touch of olive oil (easy though each spoonful is 120 empty fat calories) and saute for a while till they wilt, and even after that. it brings out the natural sugar in the veggies. you can add sea salt or kosher salt to taste/remove bitterness and italian seasoning or other seasoning your kids like. saute them with mushrooms, onions, garlic and/or eggplant for a nice side dish

Emily recommended this recipe that her family loves:  Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Swiss Chard and Pecornio Cheese

Thanks for all your great ideas!!