Teach Me Tuesday Cooking With Swiss Chard

So, today I wanted to talk about my new love affair with Swiss Chard!!! I know, it doesn't sound like it would be the most appetizing vegetable. Swiss Chard tastes great, it is easy to cook with and is a wonderful source of vitamins.
What is it?? Well, Swiss Chard is a member of the beet family. It is a large leafy green vegetable often with a white, red or purplish celery like stalk. Swiss Chard is super easy to grow and it is available in your grocery store all year long. Swiss Chard can be prepared like spinach and is an excellent source of vitamin A, C and Iron!

A few weeks ago my Mom made a wonderful pasta dish using Swiss Chard as one of her main ingredients. I went crazy over the bold, beautiful taste of the Chard!

Last week, I decided to make my own version of the Swiss Chard Pasta. The meal turned out great and it was an easy way for me to get in my vegetable servings for the day. It is a one pot meal which is a huge plus in my book!!

Swiss Chard Bow Tie Pasta

Ingredients:

1 box Bow Tie Pasta

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 stalk Swiss Chard ( Our Star Ingredient)

1 pre-washed bag of spinach

1 lb of sausage

1 to 2 cups chicken ( I used a rotisserie chicken)

1 can corn

10 cherry tomatoes

1 clove of garlic


Directions:

Boil pasta

next, put a few tablespoons of olive oil in another pan.

crush 1 clove of garlic and saute in pan along with chopped spinach.

Now, before adding the Swiss chard make sure you have cleaned each leaf properly. First, I rinse the leaves under water and scrub them with a paper towel. Then, I place leaves in a bowl of water. I remove them after five minutes, dry them and chop them up.

Place chopped Swiss Chard in saute pan.

In another pan brown sausage and pre-cooked chicken along with the pasta sauce and pasta.

Only saute chard and spinach for about 4 minutes or so, now add chard and spinach to pot of pasta, sauce meats, tomatoes and finish by sprinkling Parmesan cheese over the dish and serve!!

You will love this easy, vitamin packed meal and so will your whole family!!! :)

This week I am packing boxes because we are moving on Friday. So, I turned on Food Network to entertain both myself and Robbie for a few minutes. Paula Deen (My Favorite) was making an Italian Sausage, Swiss Chard soup!! Here is that recipe as well.

Sausage, White Bean & Swiss Chard Soup

Servings: 10
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 33 min
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
1 (1.22-pound) package lean hot Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 cups chopped Swiss chard, stems removed
2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Mini cornbread muffins, optional

Directions:

In a large Dutch oven, cook the sausage, onions, and garlic over medium-high heat until the sausage is browned and crumbly, about 6 minutes. Drain, if necessary. Stir in the broth, Swiss chard, and beans. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer until Swiss chard is tender, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately with mini cornbread muffins, if desired.

I hope you enjoy today's recipes! Please link -up with any knowledge you have to share a recipe, story, craft, scripture, home remedy...

Blessings,

Sarah