Next Friday we will have been married for 26 years. When I look at our kitchen equipment, I know most of it dates from that time. The Dansk pot and bakeware (gift from Aunt Dori and Uncle Henry), the Reverware pots and pans (gift from Aunt Diane and Uncle Garik), the cast iron (group gift from roommates). We have also hung onto cookware we accquired while working at Whole Earth, even longer ago. So it was very unusual for me to buy, on the spur of the moment, a new pot (on sale in the scratch and dent aisle! with a coupon!) while shopping with Roya at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Roya scored some new, mismatched dishes and mugs and a small pot while we were at it. It was like going to Goodwill but everything was new..... and when it's new, you know nobody has ever cooked any meat in it! In the end, we got four plates, two bowls, two pots and two mugs for $24.00, and everyone was happy. When we got home, there were just enough chard leaves in the garden to make the year's first batch of Cheesy Chard from one of my first cookbook's ever, Recipes for a Small Planet, by Ellen Buchman Ewald. We love this recipe, which is simple and hard to stop eating. In the past few years I've substituted many items for the cheese: vegan cheese, smashed-up tofu, tofu ricotta, or a dollop of Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese. This time I was in the mood for something lighter, and just added chunks of avocado, and it was absolutely delicious. Another deliciousness factor was the addition of Marinated Tempeh Cubes from Claire Seguin's Cooking with Tempeh. Below is the original recipe from my original, falling-apart cookbook. I hope this isn't breaking any copywright law... I can only say, "Ellen, your cookbook has been so important in my vegetarian life I just wanted to share it with my friends!"
Note the glass lid. What sold me on this pot was the glass lid with the vent hole. When I cooked the brown rice, for once the water didn't sizzle out from under the lid and all over the stove!!!
Cheesey Chard (Original Recipe - do with it what you will :)
Cheesey Chard (Original Recipe - do with it what you will :)
- 3/4 cup raw brown rice, cooked
- 1/3 cup grated cheese
- oil
- One large bunch chard (or other leafy green)
- 2 onions, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- soy sauce to taste
- Chop the chard and stems separately and add stems to the onions.
- In a large pot or wok, saute the onions, garlic, and chard stems until onion is transparent.
- Stir in the cooked rice and put the chopped chard leaves on top. Cover and let steam a few minutes until the chard is wilted, then stir into the rice.
- Add the cheese and tamari, stir and serve.
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