Here's the basic preparation I use most often. Wash it and trim off the tough parts of the stem ends. Cut the stalks into 1" pieces and tear the leaves into 2" pieces but keep stems and leaves separate.

Heat some olive oil in a skillet and saute stems ocver medium-high heat until beginning to soften, stirring occasionally, for about 4 minutes.

Add the leaves and chopped garlic, cover and steam over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until stems and leaves are tender, about 6 to 8 minutes or so. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Then I like to mix in a splash of basalmic vinegar and stir in some toasted pine nuts or walnuts but you could omit or add some lemon juice and zest or anything you'd like.

I also make chard in the microwave, following a similar procedure. It's relatively tender compared to something like collard greens so doesn't need long stewing, although some people prefer it that way.

Enjoy your beautiful new vegetable!

I like vegetables simply prepared most of the time. I wash and cut it up into 1/2 or so strips, trimming the toughest part of the stem off. I then saute in a bit of olive oil and minced garlic until limp. I also use it as veggie in a frittata after sauteing. S&P at the table. I really like chard.

I'm sure other people will give you more imaginative ideas.

Well, I made the Swiss chard for tonight's dinner, following Ruthanna's and Eileen's guidelines, except that I started with some chopped sweet onion sauteed in olive oil until it was carmelized. Then, when the balsamic vinegar was added, there was a sweet-and-sour effect. OMG, it was delicious!

Thanks for the great ideas!

Sue

Here swiss chard (aka silverbeet) is subbed for any recipe calling for English spinach, which has only become commercially available relatively recently.

Sue, that really does sound delicious. I like chard even better than spinach (unless it's old, strong flavored chard).

Chard can be used in almost every recipe cabbage would be used in (I've even done a half-half mix with cabbage for slaw), and the leaves in any recipe spinach is used in. It is more tender than the former, a bit more hearty than the latter.

Rainbow chard, the kind you got, is generally more tender than plain old Swiss Chard. Even the thicker parts of the stems can be fine, if you slice them to fairly thin pieces, diagonally across the grain and put them into the pan/pot a bit before the more tender stems and leaves.

If I get a particularly large bunch that I don't think I'll use up all at one meal cooked, I like to toss a fine julienne of the leaves into my salad mix.

I find also that chard lends itself very well to sautes involving toasted nuts...it has a more robust flavor and texture than some other greens.

Also, if you're a gardener, Swiss chard is easy to grow and care for.

The above suggestions are good ones. Also, chard is good in a quiche.

Jim

I grow the rainbow chard and use it in a variety of ways.

Large leaves for "cabbage rolls".
Raw in salads. Thinly slice the stems on an angle and tear or chop the leaves. Pretty!
Sauteed as above.
Toss into veggie or bean soups.
Chopped, boiled with a splash of balsamic as a side dish.
Use in any recipe calling for spinach: quiche, dips, souffle, etc.

Deanna

Thanks for all the wonderful ideas! There are so many possibilities I'd like to try.

It was fun to discover a "new" vegetable. Since it worked out so well, it makes me want to be adventurous and try others that I've previously passed by.

Sue

I saw Laura Calder (French Food at Home) make a tart with swiss chard. It looked really good, but I haven't made it. Here's a recipe:

Ingredients:

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (half of 17.3-ounce package), thawed
2 tablespoons butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 bunch Swiss chard, ribs removed, leaves chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 1/4 cups whipping cream
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch of ground nutmeg

Preparation:

Roll out pastry on floured work surface to 12-inch square. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Trim overhang to 1 inch. Fold under; crimp edges. Cover; chill.

Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add leeks and thyme. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover; cook until leeks are very tender but not brown, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add chard; saut until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cool.

Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425�F. Whisk cream and next 5 ingredients in large bowl. Mix in cooled leek mixture. Pour filling into crust.

Bake tart 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350�F and bake until filling is puffed and just set in center, about 15 minutes longer. Transfer to rack; cool 10 minutes.

That tart is the sort of thing I had in mind when I said quiche. It is very good and not a lot of work to make.

BTW, Swiss chard is trouble free and productive in the garden. It grows through heat which shuts down other leafy greens.

Jim

What Jimster said! Also, it will grow late into the season, easily weathering light frosts. Another use for the large leaves is as a replacement for cabbage leaves when making cabbage rolls.

I'm still picking and using mine here in Wisconsin. I have it near my herbs and some non-poisonous flowers. I let it go to seed, and it's been kind enough to replant itself for years. This is its favorite time of year. I chose the "Bright Lights" variety so I get to enjoy the rainbow stems. Easy, carefree, beautiful and delicious: My kind of plant!

I love swiss chard. That bright lights is so beautiful too, although I love any type. Since it does grow so easily, it was always in our garden as a kid and we had it often. I must admit that one of my favorite ways is still about the simplest. Steamed in the water clinging to the leaves and dressed with butter and soy sauce. A little squirt of lemon juice makes it perfect. Sometimes I like to throw in a bit of garlic when I'm cooking the stems before the leaves, then the same butter and soy sauce with lemon. Yum. That would probably do well on my container porch garden next year.

Oh, I have a GREAT recipe for you! I grew Swiss chard this year, so I had my own to use for this. I'm hoping that enough will grow back before the frost kills it to make it once more. I think you can use most greens pretty much interchangeably. I even discovered that the enormous greens from my horseradish plant are delicious, especially with white beans and sausages. Mmmm!

I love this dish. I made it for Rosh HaShana this year. It's an Iraqi Jewish recipe, and it was in the New York Times food section before RH a few years ago. When our picky picky foodie friends came from Israel for my son's wedding, there was a tiny dab of leftover in the fridge, and they ate it for a snack and decided I was a great cook after all. :-)

False Mahshi: Layered Swiss Chard, Beets, Rice and Beef
NYT September 23, 2008
Adapted from Esperanza Basson

Time: 1 hour, plus 1 hour for soaking rice

1 1/2 cups long-grain jasmine rice
2 pounds rib-eye steak, cut in 1-inch cubes (I used a cheaper cut -- maybe shoulder steak? -- and it was fine.)
Salt and coarsely ground black pepper
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large onions, peeled and diced
2 large beets (about 1 pound), peeled, 1 cut into 1/2-inch dice and 1 grated (I like more)
1 pound Swiss chard, leaves left whole and stems cut into 2-inch pieces
8 teaspoons sugar, or as needed
4 tablespoons fresh spearmint leaves
1 teaspoon dried mint
4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
Juice of 3 lemons (about 1/2 cup), or as needed.

1. Place rice in a mixing bowl and cover with water. Stir, drain off cloudy water, and repeat until water runs clear. Cover rice with fresh water and let soak for about 1 hour.

2. Season beef with salt and pepper to taste. Place Dutch oven over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of oil. When oil is shimmering, add beef and saute until well-browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove beef and set aside. Return pan to low heat and add 2 more tablespoons of oil. Add onions and saute until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add diced beets and saute for another 5 minutes. Add two-thirds of the Swiss chard stems and continue cooking until onions are golden, about 5 more minutes. Stir in beef, cover, and remove from heat.

3. Drain rice and return to a bowl. Sprinkle with salt to taste, 5 teaspoons of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1 tablespoon fresh mint and dried mint. Stir to blend, and add garlic, grated beet, remaining oil and juice of 1 lemon. Spread one-third of Swiss chard leaves in Dutch oven, on top of beef mixture. Spoon half of rice mixture on top, and cover with another third of chard leaves. Spread with remaining rice, and top with remaining Swiss chard leaves and stems.

4. In a small bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups water with remaining 3 teaspoons sugar and juice of another lemon. Taste and, if necessary, add more sugar or lemon juice so mixture is both sweet and sour. Pour over Swiss chard and bring to a boil. Cook partially covered until chard begins to wilt, 3 to 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water if pan is very wide and there is little liquid on bottom. Poke handle of a wooden spoon into mixture in three places, making holes to let steam rise through chard. Cover, reduce heat to very low, and cook until rice is tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest for 15 minutes. Just before serving, sprinkle with remaining lemon juice and remaining fresh mint.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings. (I think it makes a lot more.)

Swiss Chard and beets are very closely related. When I grow beets, I eat the greens as well as the roots. Beet greens can be used any way that Swiss chard is used, so in the recipe Gellchom posted above, if you have beets with greens, you can use the beet greens.

Here in Texas, it's just now getting to be cool enough to grow Swiss chard and beets. I usually grow both, and will pick the greens of both all winter. The biggest advantage of chard over beets is that chard produces more greens, and you have to let the beets keep most of their greens to produce food for their roots.

I'm glad you discovered chard, Sue.

Sally

Sayhellonow and Gellchom, thanks for the recipes! And thanks, everyone, for the other cooking methods and comments.

I've never had a vegetable garden, but since Coconut mentioned growing them in containers, I might consider that next spring. Not sure my porch gets enough sun, though.

Next challenge: Brussels sprouts! (Not really new to us, but we haven't had them in a long time.)

Sue

Consider halving and roasting the Brussel sprouts... or halving them and sauteeing them with onions and some sort of cured pork product, and maybe finishing them with a cream sauce. Whatever you do, don't just boil 'em, or they WILL be a challenge! ;-)

As a matter of fact, I did put in most of the greens from the beets, too, the last time I made that recipe. I really like greens!

I do too, Gellchom. I sometimes wonder why my skin's not green, as I eat so many greens!

Sally