Vegan MoFo Day 11 - Swiss Chard Pie

Vegan MoFo Day 11 - Swiss Chard Pie

Today we return back to ultra healthy vegan fare. You may notice I vascilate wildly between healthy meals and vegan comfort food. That's how I roll. For now at least! 

This recipe is a long time favorite of mine. I've been making this for years and it's always a crowd pleaser. 

Are you familiar with Susan Voisin's blog fatfreevegan.com? Susan is one of my favorite people even though we've never met in person. I love her recipes and food pics. I tell a lot of people about the blog including some of my patients. She has delish recipes which feature ingredients most people are familiar with and they are healthy. Don't be fooled by the fat free title - this food is yummy! Her recipes do contain fat, but in the form of whole foods, not oil. And in many cases the recipes can be modified to be even lower in fat if desired. 

You can search her recipes on the blog by ingredient or recipe name, but also by tags such as pressure cooker, vita-mix, or asparagus (I love her roasted asparagus soup recipe). 

I often make little tweaks to her (and everyone's) recipes, but I have never been disappointed. She even includes nutrition facts label info on the recipes. For this recipe I usually use a lot more nutritional yeast and turmeric than she calls for and less cayenne, if any.

Rainbow chard is so pretty. 

Remove and dice the stems as they get cooked first. 

Cooking stems. 

Then add the leaves and cook down. 

In the oven and ready to go!

What are your go to vegan recipe sites? Do you usually follow a recipe exactly or give it your own touch? 

Swiss Chard Pie from https://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2009/06/savory-swiss-chard-pie.html

Ingredients

• 12 ounces chard , 340 g
• 1 medium onion , chopped
• 2 cloves garlic , minced
• 12 ounces lite firm or extra-firm silken tofu, drained (1 package Mori-Nu is 349 g)
• 1/4 cup plain soy milk (60 ml)
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon potato starch or cornstarch
• 1 heaping tablespoon raw cashews , optional*(1/2 ounce or 15 g)
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
• 3/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves (or 1 tsp. dried)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a 9-inch ceramic pie pan lightly with non-stick spray.
2. Wash the chard but do not dry. Remove the center stem from each leaf. Set the leaves aside and chop the stems into small pieces. In a large skillet, sauté the onion and chard stems until softened (about 5 minutes), adding a tablespoon of water if necessary to prevent sticking.
3. Meanwhile, cut the chard leaves into bite-sized pieces. Add them to the pan along with the garlic, reduce heat, and cover. Cook until all chard is wilted. Remove from heat. If any water has accumulated, drain it; then spread chard in bottom of prepared pie pan.
4. Place tofu and remaining ingredients in a blender, and puree until very smooth. Pour over the chard in the pie pan. Use a spoon to gently open holes through the chard so that the tofu mixture penetrates it. Smooth the top so that tofu layer is even and covers all the chard.
5. Bake for 30 minutes, or until center is set. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.