Reasons to grow Swiss Chard!

1. Chard is super-easy to grow, making it an ideal choice for beginning gardeners–it thrives even in poor soil and will still produce in partial shade!

2. It’s pretty! Those bright stalks and shiny ribbed leaves look right at home in a flower border.

3. It’s good for you! A one-cup serving of boiled chard provides vitamins K, A, E, C, Magnesium, Potassium, Iron and a load of fiber. 

4. Chard offers a variety of preparation options–from salads to cooked dishes. And makes a terrific stand-in for spinach.

Here is a hearty and delicious winter soup for you to test out in the kitchen!

INGREDIENTS:

VEGETABLE STOCK:
8 cups of water
1 sweet potato, diced into 1 inch cubes
3 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 knuckles of ginger
1 yellow onion
2-3 bay leaves
3-4 sage leaves, chopped
Salt

ADDITIONAL:
Lentils
Rainbow Chard, greens and stems chopped

METHOD:

1. Boil 8 cups of water in a large pot. Add all the vegetable stock ingredients, cover with lid and reduce heat to simmer for 40 minutes until the broth tastes flavorful.

2. Meanwhile cook the lentils. About 1 cup of lentils to three cups of water should do the trick.

3. When the vegetable stock is done, fish out the bay leaves and pour into a blender or use an immersion blender until smooth. Add more water if the soup is too thick for your liking. Then add the soup to your lentils along with your chopped chard. Let simmer on medium-low for a few minutes until your greens are cooked. Garnish with sage and enjoy with a chunk of bread and drizzle of thick green olive oil.