So far this spring, the locally-grown and seasonal bits and bobs entering my kitchen have come from the hydroponic garden tended by the fourth graders at Leeds Elementary School. We’ve enjoyed salads full of fresh sprouts, used the cilantro in creamy dips, and enjoyed the Swiss chard in these chard and quinoa patties.
I actually came up with this recipe during Passover, with leftover quinoa, the not-quite-a-grain that Jews realized about 25 years ago they could eat during the holiday. I use it in a lemony strawberry tabouli at my seder table, and this year I had leftovers. Turning it into chard-quinoa patties just made sense. I used white quinoa, but red will also work. If you don’t have leftover quinoa in your fridge — or didn’t know there were different colors of quinoa — leftover rice will also work for this recipe.
The prep for the chard is simple, if a bit persnickety: strip the leaves off each side of the stem, chop the stem, sauté the stem in some olive oil and a pinch of salt, then add the leaves and some garlic and watch the chard melt in the pan. The chard used here was rainbow chard, but green chard will work just as well.
To bind the patties together, I used eggs and potato starch, which made them gluten-free and kosher for Passover. You could also use all-purpose flour.
For serving, I made a nice dip using full-fat Greek yogurt, a pinch of salt, some chopped garlic, a hefty squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and cilantro that was also from the hydroponic garden. It was very tasty and made the dish. As my husband always says, there always has to be a sauce.
Swiss Chard and Quinoa Patties
Ingredients:
One bunch of swiss chard
2 cups of leftover quinoa or rice
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
One clove garlic, chopped
One third cup flour
2 eggs
Oil for frying
Directions
To prepare the chard: Strip the leaves off, and chop the stems up into one-eight inch pieces. Add them to a pre-heated non-stick skillet with about a tablespoon of heated oil. Add a pinch of salt, and adjust the heat to medium, sautéing and stirring until the stems are soft, about 7 minutes. Once the stems have softened, roll the chard leaves up, and slice them into a chiffonade. Add leaves, the chopped garlic and a pinch of salt, and sauté until completely wilted, about six minutes.
Remove pan from heat.
In a large bowl, add the cooked chard, plus the rest of the ingredients, and stir to combine.
Using a large non-stick skillet (I just wiped down my chard skillet) heat about 3 tablespoons of your frying oil. You’ll know it’s ready when it starts to sizzle in the pan.
Using two spoons, gather about two tablespoons of the quinoa-chard mixture, roll them into a ball, add them to the skillet, and press down so they form a patty. Fry on each side until browned, which should take about 6 minutes on one side, and 4 on the reverse side.
Once your patties are browned, remove them from the skillet, and set them on a rack covered in paper towels to catch extra grease. You will have about a dozen or so patties, and the frying will most likely take two rounds. Feel free to wipe down the pan and add more oil if the pan looks brown and dry.
Serve with a creamy dip.
Molly Parr lives in Florence with her husband and two young daughters. She’s been writing her food blog, Cheap Beets, since 2010. Send questions or comments to molly.parr@gmail.com.