Go Green for Thanksgiving

Monday, November 12, 2007

A chilly Sunday evening calls for some nice warm comfort food. So last night we tried the Ray’s seitan that I picked up at the Fair Food Farmstand. I made a seitan strogonoff from Nava Atlas’ Vegetarian Express. It was really tasty and, as promised, was on the table in thirty minutes. I was able to make it pretty quickly while the real star of the table was in the oven: Chard & Kale Gratin. The recipe is based on one in Deborah Madison’s cookbook called Local Flavors, which is a beautiful and thoughtful ode to the diversity of food sold at farmers markets. (This would make a lovely holiday gift for any aspiring locavore!)

Madison’s recipe uses Bright Lights Swiss Chard and crumbled feta. I used a mixture of Bright Lights and kale because I had both in the garden. I also substituted Hendricks Telford Tomme cheese because I was picking up a few things at the suburban mega-grocery store Hennings when I saw a woman from Hendricks offering samples. I’m a sucker for free cheese! Turns out that Hendricks is now going to be carried at Hennings.  Good stuff.  Anyhoo…the Tomme was great in the gratin. I may make this dish for Thanksgiving because it always elicits rave reviews and it’s nice to have some greens on the table with all the starchy side dishes.

Here’s the recipe:

Deborah Madison’s Chard Gratin
From:  Local Flavors

2 lb. chard (coarsely chopped), including half of the stems (chopped) [I often mix chard and kale]
4 T. butter
1 onion, finely chopped
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 c. fresh bread crumbs
1 garlic clove, minced
3 T. chopped parsley [lots of different herbs are good in this]
1 T. flour
1 c. milk or cream or a mixture of cream and stock
1 c. crumbled fresh goat cheese [or another cheese or your liking]

Melt 2 T. butter in skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and chard stems and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to brown.  Add greens, sprinkle with 1 t. salt, and cook until wilted and tender (less than 10 minutes).

Preheat oven to 400 and lightly oil a 2 qt gratin dish. Melt 1 T. butter in small skillet and add bread crumbs, garlic and herbs. Cook, stirring, for one minute; scrape into bowl and return skillet to heat.

Melt 1 T. butter, stir in flour, then whisk in milk.  Simmer for 5 minutes, season w/ salt, and add to the greens. Add the cheese and season.

Pour into dish and cover with bread crumbs.  Bake until heated through and golden, about 25 minutes. Let settle for a few moments before serving.