So I peeked in my fridge the other night and was saddened by the dire vegetable situation in my kitchen after a long holiday weekend. So I headed out to Trader Joe’s in search of some hope for my cooking situation. Lo’ and behold, the shelves were bare. So I headed down the block to the trusty local kosher grocery store, and amazingly, there was some beautiful fresh swiss chard. It being the beginning of the new year and time for healthy new year’s resolutions and better eating plans, swiss chard is the perfect healthy green to be that representative to ease us into this special moment.
Swiss chard is a fabulous, hearty green that can adapt to any situation. It’s somewhere in between kale and spinach in terms of durability? Can greens be durable? I say, yes. Anyhow, they cook down nicely and pair well with most flavors. It also cooks up quickly, so it’s great for those evenings where you get home at 6pm and dinner needs to be ready before the half hour episode of The Simpsons is over. Am I the only crazy busy mom who does that? I try not to, but to be honest, the occasional park the kid in front of a show moment is the only way that dinner will be cooked and bellies will get filled.
Curry is the perfect wintery dish. It’s comforting, warm, spicy and pretty healthy. And if you follow some of my other recipes on here and also my instagram, you’ve probably seen a fair amount of similar dishes. It’s such an easy meal to turn to as I usually have all of the base ingredients at home already.
I quickly set up some basmati rice to cook. Basmati rice also mostly babysits itself while it cooks.
I sauteed up some onions, garlic and ginger and curry spices. Next, I added in the chopped swiss chard and let that cook down a little bit. I then added some chickpeas, a small amount of broth and some diced tomatoes. I added in a small amount of salt. I let everything simmer for a little bit – five to seven minutes and I was ready to go. By the time the curry was ready, so was the rice.
I tried to keep the heat level on this dish more mild so my kids would eat it, and eat it they did! Hope you enjoy this as well!
- 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 2 tbsp. ginger paste
- 1 tbsp. curry powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- half teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 tsp teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tsp teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 large bunch of green swiss chard, washed and chopped
- 1 can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
- additional salt to taste
- Heat up the oil in a large pan.
- Add in the onions, ginger and garlic and let soften for a couple minutes.
- Stir in the spices and cook another minute.
- Add in the swiss chard and let it cook down for a few minutes, stirring well.
- Add in the drained chickpeas, tomatoes and broth. Stir everything well.
- Let simmer for five to seven minutes, stirring every so often.
- Taste and add salt as necessary. If you'd like some heat, add in some cayenne or red pepper flakes.
- Serve with warm Basmati rice.
- Enjoy!
About Hindy Garfinkel
