Swiss Bliss

When in season, Swiss chard is one of my favorite things to buy at the farmers’ market. In my opinion, it is a severely underrated leafy green and should be used more often by the everyday cook. The colorful stems of rainbow chard add a cheery touch to any dish and its earthy flavor is just the right amount of earthy. Sometimes describing a food as earthy equals the food tastes like dirt, and I’m not into that.

I was visiting my friend Juliet in Del Mar last month, and imagine my pleasure when her mom offered me some fresh-cut, over-sized Swiss chard, straight from her garden. Clearly, I accepted immediately (but graciously, of course). I couldn’t wait to get home and use this produce of the freshest kind.

I decided to showcase this lovely gift in a bacon and chard pasta with a very simple sauce of garlic, lemon and extra virgin olive oil. Topped off with Parmesan cheese shavings, this pasta could easily be featured on an episode of 30 Minute Meals. The salty bacon is the perfect complement to the chard’s deep flavor, and the citrusy lemon adds brightness. Paired with a glass of red wine, this made a perfect weeknight dinner.

First, remove the ribs and cook in reserved bacon grease

Cut leaves into ribbons and add to pan

Let cook until ribs are soft and leaves are wilted

-Katrina