This last distribution, there was more than enough Swiss chard left over for us. We were the lucky beneficiaries of probably two pounds of these bright and colorful leaves, so we were quite excited to try a new recipe we found in a cookbook: creamed Swiss chard.

It’s not uncommon in Europe to enjoy warm rutabaga smothered in a nutmeg accented béchamel, so this recipe wasn’t foreign to us. Since chard has a strong and nutty flavor similar to spinach, we thought it would be interesting to taste how this flavor would match up to the spiced béchamel.

Our instincts proved correct; this dish was scrumptious. So we thought we’d share our recipe, which we pulled out of The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook.

2 servings

• 3 lbs. fresh Swiss chard
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 1 1/2 tbsp. flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
• salt & pepper to taste

1. Wash chard leaves and cut off the main ribs (we saved these for the next evening). Then coarsely cut the chard.

2. Taste the chard. If it’s bitter, boil it with a tablespoon of white vinegar only and a few pinches of salt; if not, steam it. We boiled ours because it was a little bitter for our palates.

3. Drain the chard, squeezing out as much moisture as you can, one handful at a time. You can also spread it evenly on a plate and pat it with a paper towel. Once dry, place in a medium sized pot.

4. Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat; add flour slowly, stirring constantly until smooth. Cook 1 minute, continuing to stir so that the flour is evenly distributed and doesn’t clump. Add milk slowly, again stirring constantly, and cook the sauce until it thickens and bubbles.

5. Stir in nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

6. Pour over chard and mix until the leaves are evenly coated. If the leaves cooled off while you were busy with the sauce, you might have to turn the heat to low and warm through for a minute or two.

This is one serving of Creamed Swiss Chard:

We paired this dish with a simple baked potato and chicken breast that was breaded lightly and cooked in a half tablespoon of butter. If you want to enhance the chicken, it’s a wonderful and delicious idea to reserve a little bit of the sauce to spoon over each breast. It’s a nice extra touch to tie the whole meal together.