Swiss Chard Gratin…or any green you have!

First off, let me apologize for being a bit silent lately.  Between being on the road speaking
and working on my 2nd For Dummies book I haven’t had the inclination to blog.  Instead I’ve been recipe testing, reading trashy romance novels, and sleeping…you know, practicing what I preach!

However, tonight I couldn’t resist sharing this simple Swiss Chard Gratin recipe. Swiss chard is currently taking up a significant amount of my garden, so I’ve been inspired to whip up some exciting new recipes.  First, in place of spinach in my green smoothies I’m now using swiss chard…it’s quite mild in flavor and gorgeous in color–nope, you can’t taste it. I’ve added it to omelets, tossed it into salads, and tonight I made the gratin.  If you don’t grow it or can’t find this gorgeous stalk please feel free to use any ol’ green you have on hand (kale, spinach, or a combination of all!)

Swiss Chard Gratin

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 8 cups swiss chard (or any ol’ green)–separate stems from leaves
• 2 cups bread crumbs (you can use any kind you like!)
• 8 oz goat cheese (cream cheese works fine, too)
• 1 cup half & half or milk
• 4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded (this is all I had on hand or I would’ve used parmesan)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a heavy skillet (I use my cast iron), heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Add in onions and sauté for 4 minutes.  Lower heat to medium then sauté garlic and
   bacon strips in with the onions until the bacon crisps up.  Next, add in the stems from the chard and sauté for 2 minutes. Add in the greens and sauté until slightly wilted.  Remove from the pan and dump into an 8×8 baking pan.
3. In the same skillet melt the goat cheese over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Stir in the half & half until saucy, then add in the mozzarella cheese and stir until melted.
4. Pour the cheese sauce over the greens then top with bread crumbs.
5. Bake for 30 minutes.