My veg box this week included some beautiful Rainbow Swiss Chard and to celebrate the gorgeous spring weather we have been having, I decided that I wanted to use them in a tart. A quick internet search brought me to a recipe by Ottolenghi which I knew I could adapt without too much trouble. Isn’t rainbow chard beautiful? I read that the coloured shard stalks can bleed into paler colours when cooking but I didn’t find this to be a problem. Chard does need to have a good soak and swish in a sink full of cold water to dislodge any mud that may be clinging in the leaf crevices. The stems have to cook for a little longer than the leaves so do separate them and use them! The tart was really very delicious – the flaky pastry combined with the greens and cheese reminded me of of that wonderful Greek dish of Spanakoptika. And the textures work really well – slightly crunchy celery and chard stems, buttery flaky pastry, soft greens and creamy cheese – we had this for a mezze type dinner and Jake, who invariably feels shortchanged if there is no meat, didn’t seem to notice and, unprompted, ate the left overs when he got home from school the next day. A printable recipe follows the photos below so you can scroll straight to that if you prefer not to read my ramblings but for those of you that can bear it, this is how I made the Swiss Chard and Herb Tart. First, fill the sink with water and swish the chard leaves about. Leave the in the sink for any grit to settle on the bottom and in the meantime slice the onion into half moons and start sautéing them. Slice the celery and add them to the onions. Scoop out the chard leaves and cut out the stems. Slice the chard stems and add to the pan. With lots of water clinging to the chard, slice the chard leaves and chop the herbs and garlic. When the celery has softened a little and become translucent, stir in the chard leaves, the herbs and the garlic. Let this cook down, stirring from time to time, on a gentle heat for about 10 minutes. In the meantime toast the pine nuts (these burn quickly and I find it easier to do in the microwave for a couple of minutes – they don’t brown but get nice and crunchy), crumble the feta, grate the parmesan and zest the lemon. Turn the heat off under the pan and stir in the cheeses, zest and nuts. Season with lots of freshly ground pepper. Leave to cool. In the meantime, turn on the oven and beat the eggs. Unfurl the pastry onto a baking sheet and score a 2 cm border around the edge, using the back of a knife. Spread the cooled filling within the borders and crimp the edges of the pastry to form a lip. Brush the edges with the beaten eggs. Season what is left over of the eggs and pour slowly and evenly over the filling. Dot the top with teaspoons full of ricotta and slices of goats cheese. I also added some halved marinated cherry tomatoes and used some of the marinade to drizzle over the tart. This can of course, be substituted with fresh cherry tomatoes and olive oil. Bake for half an hour and serve warm or at room temperature!
Swiss Chard and Herb Tart
adapted from Swiss Chard and Herb Tart by Ottolenghi for Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch
INGREDIENTS
- 1 medium red onion, sliced (about 85 g)
- 4 celery stalks, thinly sliced (about 220 g)
- 1 bunch of Swiss chard; stalk and leaves separated; both roughly chopped (about 250g)
- 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- 3 Tbsp mint leaves roughly chopped
- 3 Tbsp chopped parsley
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 100 g feta cheese crumbled
- 50 g parmesan, grated
- 15 g pine nuts toasted
- zest of one lemon
- 1 x 320 g sheet of ready rolled all butter puff pastry
- 8 tsp ricotta cheese
- 50 g (7 or 8 thin slices) of goat’s cheese
- 5 cherry tomatoes halved (I used the marinated ones from this recipe of mine)
- 2 beaten eggs
INSTRUCTIONS
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan over a medium low flame and add the sliced onions.
- While they cook, slice the celery and stir into the pan.
- Remove the stalks from the chard, chop these up and stir into the pan.
- Ribbon (chiffonade) the chard leaves, slice the garlic and chop the herbs.
- Once the celery has softened a little, which should take about 5 minutes, stir in the chard, herbs and garlic. Let this cook down for about 10 minutes and take if off the heat.
- Stir in the feta, parmesan, lemon zest and pine nuts and season with a little salt if necessary (the feta and parmesan are very salty) and a good grinding of pepper. Leave to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F.
- Unfurl the pastry and score a 2 cm border around the perimeter.
- Place the cooled chard mixture within the border and crimp or pinch the edge of the pastry to form a lip.
- Dot the top of the chard mixture with the ricotta, goats cheese and cherry tomatoes.
- Brush the edges of the tart with the beaten egg and then gently drizzle the remainder over the tart.
- Bake for 30 minutes and allow to cool a little before serving
Eat warm or at room temperature. Serves 4 as a light main course with a salad and some cold cuts for the determined carnivores. Or slice into 12 and serve as mezze for 6.
Yum! We, too, received a lovely bunch of chard in our veg box this week. I’m thinking risotto tomorrow… Mmmm!
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Ooh – risotto sounds lovely Karinna! I’m just about to look at your colcannon mountain…
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PS. I hope you’ve been sleeping a bit better recently?
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How sweet of you to remember! I’m trying to not touch my phone or laptop for at least an hour before bed and it seems to be working so far…though, I had dinner out last night and asked for a decaf espresso and am quite sure it wasn’t – I was up all night! That will teach me to order a coffee at night….
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That looks absolutely delicious
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Thanks Paul! Lovely flavours and texture…
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Looks amazing :) Yum!!
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Thank you! It’s a keeper!
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This looks so divine Selma! Lived the colors and textures there. A pretty and hearty composition.
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Thanks Sonal, we really enjoyed it!
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Swiss chard is one of my favorite greens – this is a great way to enjoy it!
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Thanks Laura – I can’t believe that I have ignored it for so long but I am making up for lost time now!
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Another winner Selma! Although, I must confess it’s a hit or miss for me with pastry. Is this puff pastry? Your photos are beautiful too!
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Thank you Loretta – yes, it is puff pastry – ready made and ready rolled! Try and get all butter puff if you can – it has a much better flavour!
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Food looks fabulous. I’ve also just noticed your tag line…superb!!!
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Thank you Simon – that is really sweet of you to notice and comment! I was going to get rid of it but my friends insisted that I should keep it as it really sums up what life should be about – wonderful but not perfect!! A bit like the sentiment with which you ended your last post….
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We’re perfecting imperfection in this house.
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How wonderful – have lots of chard in the refrigerator. Perhaps one to make, but I’ll substitute the pine nuts for raisins (nut allergies!). Have a French recipe for a chard tart, but it is a little more basic. This one looks like full-on flavour.
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Ottolenghi inspired so you just know it’s going to be very flavourful – I really loved the mint with the grassy green taste of the leaves – also added lots of pepper for a bit of heat!
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Dear Selma, this tart reminds me so much of a wonderful flatbread they make at Huckleberry near my house . . . they long cook kale and other leafy greens like chard until they almost caramelize, and add a very thin layer of other rotating veggies like caramelized onion or tomato. The flatbread is so delicious and this looks exactly like it. The tart would probably be more forgiving on my fragile teeth (I actually chipped a tooth trying to wrangle a bite of the crusty, broiled flatbread a few months ago!). Beautiful presentation and the flavors look to be a winning combination!
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Oh my goodness, I am so sorry to hear that – why are your teeth so brittle? The tart is not at all tooth resistant – it is puff pastry after all, but does have a little crunch to it from the celery and chard stems…Sounds like I would really like Huckleberry…
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More superb loveliness you superstar x x x x
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Thanks, Elaine xxx
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That’s gorgeous, Selma! I’m growing chards again this year. Still tiny now, but they grow fast. I have a feeling I’ll be making your tart very soon, probably more than once or twice! :-)
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I don’t know how you find the time Angie!! I am very impressed though – can we have a garden post soon to see what is happening in yours? Please…
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Yes, planning to post some of my plants, but they’re still tiny right now. Plus the weather hasn’t been cooperating. Cold and wet.
How do you feel about co-hosting FF15? If you’re up for it, you’ll be co-hosting with Jhuls. Let me know. <3
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Oh, I would be so honoured Angie!! What would I have to do? If you need to email me it is selmastable at gmail dot com xx
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I’ll send you an email soon. Thank you! XX
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This looks so absolutely great! I love the goat cheese on it. Can never go wrong with goat cheese… :)
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I completely agree – I love a good chèvre, any way at all!!
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Love it, Selma it looks delicious. I never knew it’s also called Swiss chard. In Australia it’s just spinach or silverbeet.
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So many vegetables have different names across the various ponds – zucchini/courgette and aubergine/eggplant are a couple that just popped into my head! The tart is a really great combination of flavours…I am glad I tried it.
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Your tart looks absolutely spectacular! :) I would love to have a piece with my evening tea.
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Aww – that’s really sweet – thank you! Give it a go – it is really very easy : )
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This looks so good, Selma! All those veggies make me happy. Yum!
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i love your easy to follow pics. What a great recipe- I feel like making it now. Thanks for the inspiration.
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Thanks Francesca! Sometimes those photos help to summarise what can be lengthy prose and demonstrate that it is not difficult at all!
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This looks divine! Great recipe, thanks for sharing! :)
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Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting Jessica – it was really lovely and I feel like making it again this week!
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I love this Selma. Such a fantastic vegetarian recipe to have on hand. Thanks for sharing!.
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Hein, thank you for stopping by and commenting! I am still thinking about your beautiful pannacotta!!
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I’m finally catching up on my blog reading today, after being away for a few days. This looks delicious!! You put together your photos and descriptions so well. Thank you.
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Thanks Ardys! Just got my IMK post out after being inspired by yours!
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Pingback: In My Kitchen – May 2014 | Selma's Table
Selma- that is one flavour packed tart. We always see swiss chard but haven’t tried them yet. This looks like a good recipe to start with. :)
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Definitely – I have also posted a recipe for Swiss Chard with Tahini sauce which is delicious – it’s in the Cook the Books section…such a lovely leafy green – wish I had discovered it earlier!
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I thought this herb tart looked familiar – it’s adapted from Ottolenghi! I just made his herb pie the other day and was so pleased with how it came out. Now I want to make this open faced tart with my next bunch of chard soon! Thanks for the recipe!
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You will really love the flavours in this when you make it. I found the recipe on the internet rather than one of his books and it is very Ottolenghi!! I really like his cooking style and love watching his TV series….#chefcrush !!
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I’m sure it was really tasty! thanks for sharing it Selma!
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Thank you Julia!
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This looks so delicious. So happy to have discovered your blog. Stunning photography. Emma xx
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Emma – thank you very much indeed! I have had a quick look round your and have garden envy now! I am still using my iPhone 4S to take pics and trying to psych myself up to learn about and use a SLR/DSLR or whatever they are called!!!
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