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Chard salad with Walnut Raspberry Dressing

chard salad with walnut raspberry dressing

Thanks for all the great comments. I am feeling better, although I’ll admit that this cold is just hanging on and tormenting me. But enough of that because despite the silly cold I’m as busy as ever and I’ve got something special to share with you today. I know it’s just a salad but I personally think that the colors and flavors of this salad are just phenomenal. I dubbed it the french apron salad because it has the same color combination as the apron I bought in Paris. The very same apron that I photographed and used as the graphic header up above…yup, that’s the one. Now you see what I mean.

chard salad with walnut raspberry dressingHere in Wisconsin we’ve had several weeks of tender chard. I know that may sound strange but chard usually has pretty thick and sturdy leaves but the last two batches that my CSA delivered have had beautifully soft, tender greens with stems that match. It seemed wrong to even contemplate cooking this chard so I decided to make a salad. I used a fabulously fresh walnut oil and a raspberry vinegar to create a dressing, I topped it with toasted walnuts, red onions, and carrots. I also used the chard stems but they required a bit of special handling. Chard stems seem to have teeny tiny deep channels that hold onto sand and soil like crazy. I washed then in a sink full of fresh cold water but that didn’t get rid of all the grit and there is nothing worse than a gritty salad. So I filled a quart mason jar 3/4 full with cold water and I dropped the stems in, screwed on the lid and shook it up for at least a minute. When I dumped them out and rinsed them off I gave one the grit test and it passed. The stems add a significant amount of color and a ton of flavor so I’m glad I found a way to use them.

We often get mixed baby greens in our CSA box and they have so little texture and flavor that I really dislike them. But this salad has big textures, big flavors and yet there is a subtlety, a tenderness that is really inviting. I plan on making this pretty salad again.

Chard Salad
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1 bunch of tender chard, stems and leaves
1 small red onion
2 carrots, sliced thin

2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar
¼ cup fresh walnut oil
Squirt of honey
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup toasted walnuts

Separate the chard leaves from the stems. Wash and spin dry the leaves and chop them into 1” ribbons and place them in a large salad bowl. Trim the stems into 2 inch pieces and place them in a quart jar filled ¾ of the way with fresh cold water. Screw on the lid and shake for a minute or so. Drain into a colander and rinse with fresh cold water. Test a stem for grit by eating it. If there is any grit left repeat the shaking routine. If no grit is detected then slice the stems into thin match sticks and add to the salad bowl.

Slice the carrots into think rounds and the onion into thin slices and add to the salad bowl. Combine the dressing ingredients and mix well. Taste and adjust accordingly. Add the walnuts to the salad bowl, add the dressing and toss and serve. It is good as is but I was tempted to add goat cheese…that might be even better.

August 5, 2008 | Filed Under Local, South Beach, braising, food, low carb, low cal, recipe, soup, salad, sandwich, vermont Valley CSA 

comments

9 Responses to “Chard salad with Walnut Raspberry Dressing”

  1. _ts of [eatingclub] vancouver on August 5th, 2008

    Oh! Yes, I was about to say — raw chard?! Then I read about the tenderness. =) Was your tender chard YOUNG chard?

    Sounds good!

  2. vanessa on August 5th, 2008

    ts, they were full-sized leaves and stems…I’m not sure why they were so tender. But I’ll admit I like a sandwich with a bit of texture. It might be because it was very fresh..picked and delivered to my door with 48 hours.

  3. Tammy on August 5th, 2008

    Lovely salad! I like the name also…french apron. But I could swear your header has been around much longer than your trip to Paris, unless you’ve been to Paris before? Anyway, I’m making the salad for my loved one this evening and I know she’ll love it!

  4. vanessa on August 5th, 2008

    Good eye Tammy, actually the header use to be a graphic image of bands of color, very similar to the colors in this apron and originally inspired by the cover art work on a Nigel Slater cookbook that I adore. Anyway I was in this store in Paris and the apron caught my eye because it matched my blog header. As soon as I got home with it I shot pictures of it and turned it into my header. So there we have it…the annotated history of my blog header. I hope she loves it..it is so pretty and super tasty.

  5. lo (Burp! Where Food Happens) on August 5th, 2008

    We have had a really interesting season this year when it comes to brassicas and greens! We’ve also experienced the unusually tender chard this year… though I never thought to use it for a salad. Very nice idea!

    I love the raspberry/walnut dressing. Found a recipe years ago for a goat cheese salad with black raspberry/walnut vinaigrette, and ever since I’ve been hooked!

  6. Kaykat on August 7th, 2008

    Wow! This sounds great. I love chard, but I don’t think I’ve thrown it into a salad. Given the crop in my veggie patch right now, this recipe is definitely on the list for next week.
    :)

  7. cookinpanda on August 7th, 2008

    Chard is so delicious, and I’m not in the habit of eating it as a salad, but this sounds pretty good.

  8. esmeralda Williamson-Noble on August 7th, 2008

    I love chard too. Though I bought a bunch from a local farm last week and didn’t taste of anything, never had that before. Anyway, I ‘ll try your salad.
    Esmeralda

    How do you cook Moon Dal, just the basic reciepe, thanks

  9. Jef on August 11th, 2008

    “ass to the salad bowl”

    Whoa now, I thought this was a family show! :)
    I hatehatehate that spellcheckers don’t grab stuff like this.

    mmm, tender chard. I’m going home and making this asap!

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