a spiced life

I mentioned before that I have a bounty of swiss chard in my garden this year. This is the first time I have tried to grow chard, and I am amazed at how well it did. My vegetable garden suffers from not getting enough sun, so production tends to be on the low side. Over the years I've figured out which plants don't do well in my yard and avoid those. Given how well the chard has done, it will definitely be a keeper for future years.

The chard is planted in some in-ground planters we built at the end of the deck. In previous years, I've tried growing dwarf varieties of sunflowers and grape tomatoes in these planters without much success. Usually I throw in some impatiens or begonias and let them be a nice pop of color separating the lawn from the deck. This year I knew I would be short on garden space and wanted to try the chard, so thought these planted would be the perfect spot. The lovely multi-color stems of the 'Bright Lights' chard still give the same pop of color that the ornamentals do, plus I get the added bonus of delicious crops. A third bonus of this spot turned out to be that the slugs generally don't venture up the deck into these planters, so my chard wasn't as bite-ridden as my in-ground spinach.

I've been throwing sautéed chard into everything lately (lasagna, smoothies, stuffed in chicken breasts, and more), but wanted to really showcase the chard's lovely, earthy flavor. For those not familiar with chard, it's similar to spinach, but a bit hardier and without the strong tannins. Any recipe the calls for spinach could easily substitute chard, though it wouldn't 'dissolve' into dips and purées the same way that spinach does. This is my take on a traditional spinach quiche using my home-grown chard and basil. The dish turned out marvelously, and my almost 8yo gave it rave reviews "I didn't think the quiche would be as good as it is, but I took a bite, and wow, it's so good!" So there you have it moms; a way to get vegetables into your child's diet. Disclaimer: Your results may very.

Swiss Chard Quiche with Whole Grain Crust

Crust
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
olive oil
fresh herbs, snipped (optional)

In a food processor, combine dry ingredients, herbs if using, and butter. Pulse until the mixture is blended and forms crumbs. Turn the processor on and slowly drizzle olive oil into the bowl until the mixture forms a ball and the oil is completely incorporated (should be about 2-3 tablespoons). Press into a pie plate using your fingers or the bottom of a glass and dock the crust (poke little holes all over the bottom) with the tines of a fork. Freeze for 20mins.

After the crust is chilled, bake in a 425 oven for 15-20mins until is starts to turn brown. Remove from oven to cool, and reduce the oven temperature to 350.

Filling
1/4 olive oil or butter
1 small onion
4 cloves garlic
1 large bunch swiss chard (approx. 20 leaves)
1 small bunch basil (approx. 1/2 cup roughly chopped)
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
5 eggs
1/4 cup cream or milk
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, gouda, jack, etc)

Prep: Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and cut the stems of the chard into 1/2" long pieces. Roughly chop the card into 1"x2" strips. Roughly chop the basil into small strips. Beat the eggs with the milk and the parmesan cheese.

Heat the oil in a pan and sautée the onion for 2 minutes. Add the chard stems and garlic, and continue to sautée until the stems wilt and the garlic begins to take on some color (another 3-5 minutes or more). Add the chard leaves and sautée until they start to go limp. Add the basil and all of the dried spices and mix together.

Toss the vegetable filling with the shredded cheese in the cooled crust and top with the egg mixture. Bake at 350 for around 30mins or until the mixture starts to set up when jiggled. It should move slightly when jiggled, but the center should not be wobbly.

Let the quiche cool for at least 20mins before cutting otherwise the egg may ooze all over the pan.