Adventures with Swiss Chard

Swiss chard is another one of those vegetables that I did not grow up eating, so of course I bought some so I could figure out what to do with it. I learned several things including that you can use Swiss chard in a number of recipes instead of spinach. Also, my friend Jennifer tells me that when you buy Swiss chard you want to get red Swiss chard not green - apparently it's healthier. In case you know as much about Swiss chard as I did, that means the stalks and veins are red, not the leaves....

My first Swiss chard experiment involved a pasta & sausage dish. I found this recipe on Epicurious.com (one of my favorite websites - actually my home page on my home PC). Thanks to my friends at Clever Sexy Beautiful Tough, I found an amazing new exercise regime that has me exercising like a fiend, but also constantly hungry so I'm in to hearty food right now (and yes, I'm still losing weight.) If you are dieting, use turkey sausage and whole wheat pasta.

Pasta with Sausage and Swiss Chard
KW Modifications/Details: They don't sell Kielbasa at the farmer's market so I bought spicy Italian sausage from Peach Creek Farm (yum!) I haven't been to the grocery in forever because of my travels so I was out of garlic and used garlic infused olive oil - it turned out pretty well. I had some chicken broth leftover from another recipe so it used that instead of water. Oh, and I did use whole wheat penne. This recipe was wonderful and very filling. Love the chard!

3/4 lb Swiss chard (preferably red; from 1 bunch)
1/2 lb kielbasa, quartered lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes
3/4 lb penne
1 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1/2 cup) plus additional for serving

Cut out center ribs and stems from chard, then thoroughly wash, along with leaves, in several changes of cold water. Cut ribs and stems crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces and coarsely chop leaves.

Cook kielbasa in oil in a 5-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl.

Cook chard ribs and stems with salt in fat remaining in pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add chard leaves, water, and red-pepper flakes and simmer, partially covered, until chard stems are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove lid and stir in kielbasa.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, then reserve 1/2 cup pasta-cooking water and drain pasta in a colander. Add pasta to chard mixture with cheese and salt to taste and toss until combined well. Thin with some of reserved pasta water if necessary.