Eat Real. Eat Good.

Balsamic Sauteed Vegetables with Braised Chard

For the chard lover. Sweet potato adds a little weight to a light veggie dish with fennel, shallots, and swiss chard. Raisins and walnuts round it out with tastes and textures that are just perfect, making it a complete meal on its own. Can be made vegan by substituting oil for the butter. Cooks up quick and looks beautiful on a plate. (Makes a great snack or lunch the next day, served cold on whole wheat noodles.)

Ingredients

  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 oz. balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 1 T butter (or oil)
  • 2 T minced fennel fronds
  • 4 oz. vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • whole wheat noodles (optional)
  • One medium sweet potato
  • 1 T minced parsley
  • Two or three bulbs baby fennel
  • Small bunch of scallions
  • 1 bunch (12 leaves or so) Swiss chard
  • One kohlrabi

Preparation

Preparation:

Peel and dice sweet potato into 1/4 inch pieces. 

Chop fennel bulbs into 1/4 inch pieces.

Chop scallions into 1/4 inch pieces.

Dice  kohlrabi into 1/4 inch pieces.

Cut stems from swiss chard and chop them into 1/4 inch pieces.

Slice swiss chard leaves into thin strips.

Mince 1 T. of parsley.

Mince 1 T. of frond tops from the baby fennel.

Cooking:

Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add olive oil.  When oil is hot, add sweet potato.  Cover and cook for about three minutes, stirring every minute.  Remove lid, and add chopped fennel bulbs, chopped scallions, diced kohlrabi, and chopped swiss chard stems.  Saute, stirring frequently until carmelization occurs, about 5 minutes.  Pour in balsamic vinegar, stir, and remove from heat.  Salt and pepper to taste, set aside. 

Heat another saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add butter and when it's melted, add sliced swiss chard leaves.  Stir and saute for one to two minutes.  Add stock and allow to simmer until liquid has evaporated.  Remove from heat.

Into first saute pan, stir in minced parsley, minced fennel fronds, raisins, and walnuts.  Cover and let sit for two to three minutes (this can be done while the second saute pan is finishing).

 

Serving:

Spoon generous portions of sweet potato mixture onto beds of sauteed chard.  Drizzle with balsamic vinegar if desired.  Enjoy!

 

Variation: 

Instead of slicing chard into thin strips in the preparation stage, cut it into very small pieces.  Saute as directed, and then add to sweet potato mix with herbs, raisins, and walnuts.  Serve over rice or couscous.