BASIC PREPARATION
BASIC COOKING with chard and silver crust
After thoroughly washing the vegetable, drain it coarsely from excess water and throw it into boiling salted water for a few minutes. Empty it in a colander and drizzle with a little oil, or pass it in a pan with garlic and oil for 5/10 minutes. Of course you can steam it or cook it directly in a pan without boiling it first.
STUFFED PUFF PASTRY
INGREDIENTS: gr. 200 spelt flour, ml. 100 lukewarm water, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt, 300 g chard or chard, 10 crumbled walnuts
PROCEDURE: Knead the flour with water, salt and oil, knead the dough for 10 min. and then let it rest for 20 minutes covered (not in the fridge). After washing the vegetable, boil it in salted water, let it cool down and squeeze it very well out of the water, cut it with a crescent. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough on a floured surface and the result will be a thin sheet, size about 40 x 50 cm. Spread the crumbled vegetables and nuts on half a sheet and cover everything with the other half of the sheet. With a pastry wheel (or a knife), cut the puff pastry in diamonds or rectangles. About 20 will come. Place them hand by hand in a baking dish to bake in a preheated oven — 180 degrees — for 15 minutes.
COLORED RAVIOLI
INGREDIENTS:
800 g gnocchi potatoes, 300 g chard, 300 g soft wheat flour, 100 g grated Parmesan cheese, 1 whole egg, a small red turnip, nutmeg, salt, butter and sage to season the ravioli
PROCEDURE: Boil the potatoes, peel them and pass them through a potato masher. When they are lukewarm, add the salt, nutmeg, egg and half the Parmesan cheese. Divide the dough into two parts. Boil the red turnip, peel it and crush it very finely with a fork (or chop it). Wash the chard, dry it, cut it small and cook it in a pan with crushed garlic (which must then be removed), oil and salt; when cooked it must be dry, remove the garlic and add 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese. Keep aside. Take half of the potato dough, add the chopped turnip and 90 grams of flour. Knead quickly. Add 60 g of flour to the second half of the dough and work quickly. Roll out the pink dough on a very floured surface, continuing to flour both the rolling pin and the surface of the 'sheet'. Roll the dough until you get a rectangle of cm. 45 x 30 cm.; with the wheel, or knife, make 27 rectangles (5 x 10 each); place the chard filling in each rectangle with the help of a small teaspoon; close each rectangle and gently “seal” with the prongs of a fork. Proceed in the same way for the yellow dough. These ravioli should be cooked as if they were gnocchi, so when the salt water boils, they are dipped, a few at a time, and when they come to the surface they are ready. Serve with butter, sage and parmesan.
GREEN MILE WITH SILVER CRUSTS
INGREDIENTS: gr. 200 millet, gr. 300 chard, gr. 400 silver ribs, 2 onions, 300 g ricotta, 3 tablespoons olive oil, salt, 10 almonds, a small shallot (or a slice of onion) pepper or chilli to taste.
PROCEDURE: Wash the millet and cook it over medium heat with 500 grams of cold water and salt. After about 20 minutes the millet will have absorbed all the water and will be ready. Wash the silver ribs (chard ribs), separate the green leaf from the white crust, wash the chard. Slice an onion and put it to dry in a pan with a tablespoon of oil, add the finely chopped coast leaves and chard, season with salt and cook for 20 minutes. Slice the other onion, dry it with a tablespoon of oil, cut the ribs into chunks, add them to the onion with 1/2 cup of water, salt and, if desired, pepper or chilli pepper. Cooking 20 min. Prepare the croquettes: add the millet to the chard, mix very well, with the help of a spoon form the croquettes. Place them in an oiled dish and bake 10 minutes at 160 degrees. Serve the croquettes hot with a side dish of coast stalks; serve with the ricotta sauce: put the ricotta, almonds, sliced shallots (or a little onion) a tablespoon of oil, salt, pepper or chilli pepper to taste in the blender. Blend until you get a smooth cream without lumps.
CHARD SALAD
INGREDIENTS: 700 g chard, a handful of dried fruit to taste (walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, etc.), 1 lemon, olive oil (chilli pepper to taste), salt.
PROCEDURE: Wash the chard and cook it al dente. Toast the dried fruit without browning it too much. Season the chard with oil, lemon juice, dried fruit, salt and chilli pepper.