chard with garlic and lemon
Bunches upon bunches of bright, beautiful rainbow chard sat smack dab in the middle of the produce section, on sale no less. Enticing, enchanting, how could I refuse their colorful, Summery lure? I’m just getting to know fresh greens, but I do know that a slathering of spicy garlic and bright lemon will help get us acquainted quite nicely. A bed of creamy mashed potatoes is pretty awesome, too. These were so good, I ended up eating the whole pan. Sorry, Eli! Bwahahaha!
I had a traumatic greens-related flashback the other day. I was probably about five when my dad went out of town for a week of training. I was driving my mom c-r-a-z-y, instigating drama all over the place. One night I refused to eat some greens of the canned spinach variety. Can you blame me? She had had enough, and thus began Battle Canned Spinach. I couldn’t leave the table until I ate them, or at least some of them. Stubbornness is genetic, apparently, and I could have sat at that table for hours. I’m pretty sure I had before, actually, all because of some wild rice. Those crunchy long black grains creeped me out. Love them now.
Anyway, there were sirens sounding in the distance, and my mom casually mentioned that the food police might be coming for me. It’s funny now, and something I’d probably do if I had kids, but younger me started Freaking out. My sister got in on the action, freaking out because she didn’t want me to go to jail. I asked my mom if she remembered all this and yes, yes she does. She was thinking about it just a few days ago, while vacuuming. Trauma for everyone!
In summary:
fresh greens=tasty yum yums
canned greens=tears
Love you, mom! ♥
Do any of you have a traumatic childhood food memory? Anything that you hated then but love now?
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Sauteed Rainbow Chard with Garlic and Lemon (from food and wine)
serves about 2
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1-2 cloves of garlic, depending on your tastes, minced
1 pound rainbow chard, inner ribs removed and cut into 2″ pieces, leaves cut into 2″ ribbons
1/4 of a lemon
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add leaves a handful at a time, stirring and allowing them to wilt a little before adding more. Season with salt and pepper and continue cooking until the leaves are wilted and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and wipe out the pan.
Add remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan, keeping over medium-high heat. Add stalks and cook, stirring occasionally until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add wilted leaves to pan and stir. Turn off heat, squeeze with lemon juice and toss. Serve immediately.
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