“Cream” of Swiss Chard Recipe!

Swiss Chard is one if the highest nutrient density food you can have.  It will fill you up, help you lose weight and the bonus is this:  it can taste great!  There’s not a bit of cream in this 3 ingredient ultra-creamy soup.   When you puree potatoes and Swiss chard that have been cooked together, the result is pure silk. 

This recipe is taken from the book Healthy 1-2-3 by Rozanne Gold.  Rozanne Gold, who began her career at the age of 24 as first chef to New York's Mayor Ed Koch, is a three-time winner of the prestigious James Beard Book Award and winner of the IACP/Julia Child Cookbook Award.

(***My side note:  Don't be embarrassed if you have no idea what swiss chard is.  I had no idea until last year!  just go to the supermarket and ask a produce person to help you.  They're usually happy to explain things and in my experience, no one has ever made me feel badly about not knowing what a vegetable is.)

Ingredients:

• 3 large potatoes, red or Yukon Gold, about 1 1/3 pounds.
• 1 large bunch Swiss chard, about 1 ¼ pounds
• 2 ½ Tablespoons unsalted butter
• kosher salt
  

*** (Another side note:  You can always substitute the butter for olive oil or unsweetened coconut milk.  I love the coconut because my husband can't eat dairy.  The recipe is so easy that you can experiment. I must admit that the butter tastes the best.)

In a 4 to 6 quart pot (****You always need a great pot in your kitchen.  I've seen people love this Creuset; it makes your kitchen feel so homey), bring 8 cups of water and ½ tablespoon kosher salt to a boil.

Peel potatoes. Halve the potatoes lengthwise and cut halves into ½-inch-thick slices.  Add to boiling water.  Lower heat to medium-high and cook, covered for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, wash Swiss chard thoroughly.  Cut off bottom 3 inches of stems and place in a small bowl for later.   Tear leaves into small pieces. Add leaves to pot after potatoes have cooked for 20 minutes.  Cook for 10 minutes longer.  Do not overcook or chard will lose its bright green color. 

Pour 3 cups cooking liquid from potato-chard mixture through a colander or course-mesh sieve.  Set aside.  Put potatoes, chard, and any remaining liquid in bowl of a food processor (****If you don't have a Cuisinart, you need one and here's a great one on Amazon. I don't know what I would do without my mini.)  Process until smooth.  Add butter and process for several minutes, until very smooth. 

Return blended mixture to pot.  Slowly add up to 3 cups of reserved broth, stirring, to make a smooth, thick, and creamy consistency.  Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. 

Cook for several minutes over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Blanch (***This just means throw into boiling water for a minute) reserved chard stems in a small amount of boiling salted water until tender, about 5 minutes.  Cut into small pieces and scatter over each serving of soup.  Serve hot. 

Makes 6.5 cup.  If you're on Weight Watchers, one serving has about 2 points.  This could be your soup for almost a week!

~Emily

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Comments

[Jenifer]

Excellent recipe! Thank you!

I got 7-8oz servings at 191 calories a serving.

I used a blender instead of a food processor and that worked fine for making his a smooth, creamy soup.

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