Creamed Swiss Chard

By ldelmas

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Swiss chard
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 1-3/4 cups milk
• 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbsp grated Romano cheese
• 1 Tbsp lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Preparation

Step 1

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Remove the stems from the Swiss chard. Keeping the stems separate, cut them into 1/2" pieces. Blanch the leaves in the boiling water until tender, about 3–4 minutes. Remove and cool. Cook the stems in the boiling water until tender, about 4–5 minutes. Drain the water from the stems and set aside.
Melt the butter over medium heat in a 2-qt sauce pot. Add the garlic and sauté for a minute. Stir in the flour. Add the milk and stir until the mixture begins to simmer and has thickened. Add the Parmesan, Romano, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Squeeze the water out of the Swiss chard leaves and chop. Add the leaves and stems to the cheese sauce and heat over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until warmed through.
This recipe takes about 15-20 minutes to prepare and doesn’t require your oven like most creamed spinach recipes. So, on Thanksgiving, when the oven is busy with your turkey and other sides, you can cook this right on your stove top.