Chard packages

Tired of eating sautéed greens? Liven up your plate by making these chard packages.

My crisper is overflowing with greens—kale, chard, beet greens, and lettuces—from our CSA. I wanted something different for dinner, so I decided to stuff my chard leaves. I had leftover brown rice and lentils that I knew would make a perfect filling. I spied a half full jar of tomatillo salsa that I decided to use for the sauce. These are similar to stuffed grape leaves you might find at a Mediterranean deli.

Don't worry this is a pretty easy and quick recipe. Simply select the six biggest leaves you have. Prepare the filling, about a cup's worth. Stuff your leaves and bake. Feel free to change up the ingredients in the filling or the sauce. I think tomato sauce or freshly diced tomatoes would be nice.

Chard packages with tomatillo salsa
6 large chard leaves, rinsed well
~1 c of tomatillo salsa
1 tbsp olive oil or ghee
2 small onions, diced small
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp oregano
pinch of sea salt
pinch of red pepper chili flakes
1 small carrot, diced small
1 celery stalk, diced small
1 radish, diced, small
1/4 c cooked brown rice
1/3 c cooked lentils

Preheat oven to 350. Pour half of the tomatillo salsa into the bottom of a loaf pan.

Cut the chard stems at about where the leaves start. I normally make an upside down V with my knife into the stem. Set leaves aside.

Prepare your filling. This is where you can get creative. I used what vegetables I had on hand. You really need about a cup of filling. Saute the diced onion in the olive oil until transparent. Add the garlic, oregano, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cook until fragrant then add the carrot, celery, and radish. Cook for another couple of minutes, then add the rice and lentils.

Fill your chard leaves. Grab a leaf, scoop about almost two tablespoons of the filling, and add to the middle of the base of the leaf (widest part). Roll in the sides, while rolling towards the end of the leaf (smallest part). Make sure to hold the filling with your fingers, so it doesn't go all over the place. After one or two you'll get the hang of it.

Nestle the chard packages, seam side down, right onto the salsa in the loaf pan. Drizzle the rest of the salsa over the tops. Cover with foil and bake for about 20-22 minutes.

Enjoy with a side of lentils and chipotle sweet potatoes.