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Lettuce Patch Gardens Sustainably grown artisan vegetables Colorado
Springs, Colorado |
Swiss Chard with Bacon, Pancetta or
Prosciutto
The smoky or cured flavor
of these ingredients is a perfect match for Swiss chard.
20 ounces of Swiss chard
4 ounces of bacon, pancetta
or prosciutto, cut into ¼ inch cubes
1 tablespoon of olive oil,
if using prosciutto
salt and freshly ground
pepper
Wash the Swiss chard in a
large bowl of cold water, lift the leaves out of the water and drain in a
colander. Repeat the washing and draining until there is no sand or grit left
in the bottom of the bowl. If the insides of the stems are gritty, scrub them
gently with a small brush.
If the Swiss Chard is fully
mature – the stems are wider than ¼ inch – cut the leaves away from the stems.
Cut the stems in half lengthwise, and then slice them into approximate ¼-inch
dice. Cut the Swiss chard leaves across into ½-inch wide strips. (This is
easiest if you stack and roll up the leaves and then slice the roll. (If you’re
using baby chard, don’t bother separating the leaves and stems; just cut the
leaves and stems together into ½-inch-wide strips.
Heat the bacon or pancetta
in a sauté pan over medium-low heat until they release fat and barely turn
crispy, about 8 minutes. Remove the cubes of meat from the pan.
If you’re using prosciutto,
heat the olive oil and sauté it for a minute or two, then remove from the pan.
If you’re using tender
leaves with their stems, turn the heat up high and stir the leaves in the
residual oil from the meat for 2 to 4 minutes or until the leaves are
completely limp.
If you’ve cut out the
stems, add the diced Swiss chard stems to the garlic mixture and stir every
couple of minutes for 6 to 10 minutes, or until the cubes become translucent
and tender. Turn the heat up to high and stir in the leaves. If there’s not
enough room for all the leaves in the pan, add only half the leaves and wait a
minute before adding the rest. Stir the leaves for 4 to 6 minutes—the exact
time will depend on the age of the leaves—until the leaves soften.
Season the leaves with salt
and pepper and serve immediately.
From Vegetables
by James Peterson
Get more recipes like this from: Lettuce Patch Gardens-Sustainably grown
artisan vegetables in Colorado Springs, CO