After forcing my poor mother to create a gigantic organic veggie garden purely for my own gluttonous desires, I am now enjoying a "glut" (haha) of rainbow chard/silver beet.
Which is, contrary to my memories, quite delicious. I seem to remember it being tough and grainy, but instead, the leaves are silky smooth and the stalks are delicious, nutty and crisp.
I've been using it up in various ways over the last 3 weeks, but the most popular way has been to steam the leaves with a touch of nutmeg, and make a gratin of the stems.
It's a Stephanie Alexander recipe from her Cook's Companion book. Basically, you separate the leaves from the stems. You slice the stems up, blanch for 10 mins in boiling water, then drain and place in a gratin dish. You boil a cup of cream in a small saucepan, then turn the heat off and stir in 50-100g of cheese (I've tried it with blue cheese - the original recipe and with parmesan. I think I preferred the parmesan).
Top it with breadcrumbs and a spray of oil and bake for about 30 mins in a hot oven. It is delicious and nobody knows what it is until you tell them!
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