chard gratin

In my family greens are a staple - always have been and always will be. You can always count on my mom having a pot of greens simmering away on the stove or tucked away in the refrigerator.

Generally, I tend to prefer spicy greens so swiss chard, one of the milder greens, often gets overlooked in my own kitchen but it's one of my mom's favourites. It also happens to be a nutritional powerhouse, containing high concentrations of many vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A, K and C as well as iron and dietary fibre. One cup of cooked chard contains more than the recommended daily value for vitamin A and almost one-quarter for iron!

If that's not enough to turn you on to this lovely green, this gratin by Laura Calder will make you a convert. Layered with cheese and bechamel, what's not to love? Trust.

Cook the stems and leaves separately and layer with gruyere in a buttered gratin dish. I added ham but it's definitely optional.

Make the bechamel. A tip from Laura: make it extra thick as the chart will exude liquid in the oven.

Top with bechamel, more gruyere and a sprinkling of parmesan for good measure. Cook until bubbly and golden then devour!

Chard Gratin

Adapted from French Taste by Laura Calder

serves 4

bechamel: 1 1/2 cups milk 1/4 onion 1 bay leaf 1 garlic clove 2 tbsp butter 2 tbsp flour 1/4 cup sour cream gratin: 1 bunch chard 1 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, sliced 1 ham steak, chopped (optional) 100 g Gruyere, grated Finely grated Parmesan to taste

Preheat oven to 400℉.

In a saucepan, heat milk with onion, bay leaf and garlic until just boiling. Remove from heat and allow to steep for about 10 minutes then remove the onion, bay and garlic and discard.

Melt butter over medium-low heat. When foaming subsides, whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute then gradually whisk in hot milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until very thick, then remove from heat and add sour cream. Set aside.

Remove the stems and ribs from the chard, chop into 1 inch (2.5 cm) lengths, and cook in a pot of boiling salted water until tender. Drain and rinse under cold water and set aside.

Slice the chard leaves. Heat olive oil over medium heat and add sliced onion, cooking until translucent. Add chard leaves and cook until tender.

Scatter cooked chard stems and ribs and, if using, ham in the bottom of a buttered gratin dish. Top with half of the Gruyere and add pepper to taste, then top with the cooked chard leaves. Add bechamel, then the remaining Gruyere and top with grated Parmesan.

Bake until golden and bubbly, about 15 minutes.

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