Rwop Finalist Swiss Chard Au Gratin Recipes

SWISS CHARD AU GRATIN

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 375⁰f (190⁰c). Coat a small baking dish well with non-stick spray or cooking oil.
• Prepare your Béchamel Sauce; in a small pot met your butter over medium heat. When the butter is hot and bubbling, add all of your flour and whisk immediately to combine over medium heat, to make a roux.
• Cook your roux - stirring constantly so it doesn't burn - until it starts to smell like cookies. Now add your cold milk, all at once, and whisk well to combine and remove any remove lumps. Reduce your temperature to medium-low and season to taste with salt, pepper and a dash of nutmeg. Whisk as it simmers to thicken. A perfect Béchamel will coat a spoon well, and if you run your finger through the sauce on the spoon and turn the spoon sideways, the sauce will not run. Once complete, remove from heat and set aside to cool.
• Add approximately two inches of water and a teaspoon of salt to the bottom of a large pot and place it over high heat to come to a boil while you chop your swiss chard. Chop stalks a leaves in about two inch pieces, separating the tougher stalks from the tender leaves. Once water is at a boil, complexly turn off the heat but leave the pot on the element. Now add just the chard stalks to the water and cover with a tight fitting lid. Allow to steam for around 2 - 3 minutes. Now quickly add your swiss card leaves and put the lid back on for another 2 minutes. Remove the lid and turn the chard so that all of the leaves are well wilted, then immediately drain in a colander. Run steamed chard under cold water to cool as quickly as possible.
• This is the critical step in the recipe; while still in the colander press to remove any excess liquid. Then move the wilted, cool chard to the prepared baking dish and press it again. Now hold your hand over the chard and drain of all liquid again. Pour your béchamel over the chard until it's just covered. If you prefer a looser sauce, drizzle in two table spoons of heavy cream (optional, see notes).
• Top with grated Comté cheese and bake at 375⁰f (190⁰c) for approximately 30 minutes, until the swiss chard is heated all the way through, and the sauce and the cheese are bubbling through the top. Serve immediately.

SWISS CHARD WITH ROASTED GARLIC

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make a double layer of aluminum foil about 6 x 6 inches square. Place the garlic in the center and bring up the sides a little to form a cup. Drizzle over the olive oil and add the oregano, salt, and pepper. Bring the sides all the way up and twist together to make a firm seal. Place in the oven and roast for 20 to 25 minutes. The garlic should be tender and golden but not dark brown. Open the top so the garlic will stop cooking and set aside.
• Remove the leaves from the stalks of chard, finely chop the stalks and roughly shred the leaves. Set aside.
• In a large heavy skillet heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and chiles and stir for about 1 minute. Add the tomatos and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, then add the chard ribs and leaves, salt, and water. Cover the pan and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, for 10 minutes. Remove the lid, add the roasted garlic cloves, and increase the heat to high. Stirring occasionally, cook until the chard is tender but not watery, 8 to 10 minutes more. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.

SWISS CHARD AU GRATIN

Steps:

• Arrange the rack in the middle of oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
• Stem the chard, keeping the leaves whole. Salt the boiling water and add the chard and let wilt. The pot will be packed at first. Boil the chard 10 minutes, drain in a colander and run under cool water. Let it drain and squeeze out any excess liquid in a clean kitchen towel. Chop.
• Meanwhile, heat the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook 1 minute, and then whisk in the milk. Season with salt, pepper and a little freshly grated nutmeg. Stir in the roasted garlic paste. Thicken the sauce to coat the back of a spoon and adjust seasonings to taste.
• Layer half the greens in a medium casserole (8 to 10 inches long). Top with half the bechamel sauce and half the cheese. Repeat layers, ending with the cheese. Bake until bubbly and brown, 20 to 30.

GRILLED SWISS-CHARD STEMS WITH ROASTED GARLIC OIL

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Strip the chard leaves from the stems using a knife, scissors or simply your hands. Reserve the leaves for another use.
• Trim the bottom 1/8 inch of the chard stem, to remove the dry, discolored bit. Clean the stems by submerging in cold water and rinsing thoroughly.
• Aggressively season your boiling water with kosher salt.
• Working in batches, blanch the chard stems until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and let cool on a baker's rack or in a colander to continue draining.
• Grill blanched, dry chard stems evenly on both sides until charred and blistered here and there, like perfect pizza crust looks from a wood oven.
• Cut the stems into batons, and thoroughly dress the stems with roasted garlic oil (see recipe), a few drops of lemon juice and a few flakes of Maldon salt.

SWISS CHARD GRATIN

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons butter and toss with bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, herbs, half of nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.
• Boil broth in a small saucepan until reduced by half. Add cream and keep warm.
• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a small heavy saucepan over moderate heat and stir in flour. Cook roux, whisking, 1 minute, then whisk in broth mixture and boil, whisking, 1 minute. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cook onion in remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a wide 8-quart heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened. Add chard stems, remaining nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender but not browned, about 8 minutes.
• Increase heat to moderately high and add chard leaves and spinach by large handfuls, stirring, until all greens are wilted. Season with salt and pepper.
• Transfer vegetables to a colander to drain well and press out liquid with back of a large spoon. Toss vegetables with cream sauce and transfer to a buttered 12-inch oval gratin or 2-quart shallow baking dish, spreading evenly.
• Top vegetables with bread crumbs and bake in middle of oven until bubbling and topping is golden, about 20 minutes.

SWISS CHARD GRATIN

Steps:

• To pickle the chard, put 400ml water in a large saucepan or sauté pan with the star anise, sugar and vinegar. Put the remaining spices in a cloth bag tied with string, add to the pan, bring to the boil, then drop in the chard, stalk first. Press the chard down in the pan and simmer for 3-4 mins - don't worry if you can't cover the leaves completely in the liquid, as they will wilt and become submerged while cooking. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Once cooled, remove the chard from the pickle mix and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel. Lay the chard in an A4-sized baking dish. In a bowl, whisk the cream and garlic together with some seasoning, then pour over the chard. Sprinkle over the cheese and cayenne pepper, and bake for 30 mins.

SWISS CHARD GRATIN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400°.
• Coat the interior of a 1 1/2-quart gratin or baking dish with the softened butter and spoon in the 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs; tilt the dish around until they cover the buttered surface.
• Slice the chard stems and leaves into 1 1/2-inch pieces; wash in cold water; drain but don't dry them.
• Heat the olive oil in a 6-quart Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat; add the shallot and garlic; cook, stirring constantly, until softened but not browned, about 1 minute; add the chard, sprinkle with salt; cover tightly and steam until the chard has wilted to half its original volume, about 2-3 minutes; uncover and cook the chard, turning occasionally with tongs, until all the water in the pan evaporates, about 5 more minutes; season with pepper and set aside.
• Sauce - melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; whisk in the flour; cook, whisking, until mixture bubbles up and turns lighter in color, about 1 minute; pour in the cold milk all at once; whisk vigorously; add salt and bay leaf; heat, whisking, until it comes to a boil and thickens, about 5 minutes; reduce the heat to low, simmer 2 minutes; stir in the nutmeg, oregano, thyme and 1/2 cup of the cheese; remove from heat and discard bay leaf.
• Mix the cooked chard and the sauce; spoon into prepared pan; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup bread crumbs and remaining 1/2 cup cheese; bake until golden and bubbly, 35 minutes.