Creamy Swiss Chard & Green Garlic Pasta

Despite how obviously creamy and delicious this dish is, it's also healthy.

The recipe is slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen, she seriously can't go wrong, and the creamed chard is made with mostly whole milk with a little bit of butter and flour as a thickener.

You can certainly have the creamed chard by itself or you can mix in pasta like I did.

I had planned on using orecchiette which I swore I had at home and if you are shopping for this dish I would suggest regular chard as opposed to the colorful variety.

Given the horrible light when the dish was ready I had planned on taking pretty pictures the next morning.

I set some of the creamed chard aside to mix with some orecchiete I would purchase and cook the next day.  Luckily I snapped a few shots of the pasta dish before we ate it because in the morning when I glanced into the fridge I noticed that my chard concoction had turned completely pink.

Like bright, pepto bismol pink with green chunks.  It wasn't pretty but it still tasted darn good.

This is why I suggest buying the regular swiss chard. 

What started all this was the gorgeous chard and green garlic we received in our CSA box.

Green garlic is actually just young garlic (aka spring garlic) and you can see the garlic forming on the bottom.  Although it definitely has a garlic flavor, it's much milder than the traditional version.

If you don't have green garlic, which you mightn't, feel free to use spring onions, regular onions, green onions, leeks or a little of your regular garlic.  All of these options would be fantastic.

Creamy Swiss Chard & Green Garlic Pasta

1 lbs Swiss Chard, thick stems removed and leaves sliced, then chopped

3 stalks of green garlic, sliced thinly (from bottom to tender part of the greens)

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (wheat or white)

1 3/4 cup whole milk

1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 lb pasta of your choice
Salt and pepper to taste

Make sure your chard is chopped up well to avoid any long stringy bits that your little one can choke on.
Rinse the chard and place it, still wet, in a large pot over high heat.
Cover it and cook until just wilted, stirring occasionally.
Pour chard in a colander and allow it to cool.

Start cooking pasta of your choice.
I always reserve a little pasta water just in case I want to thin out the finished dish.

In a small bowl heat the milk over low-medium until warm throughout, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, wipe out your pot, place it back over medium heat and sauté the garlic in the butter until soft.
Add the flour, whisking constantly until thickened.  Make sure there are no lumps.
Add the milk in a steady stream, while whisking constantly until incorporated and the sauce has thickened.  Add the parmesan and mix until melted.
Squeeze any remaining water from the chard and mix it in to the sauce.
Taste and add salt and pepper if desired.

Combine the pasta and chard mixture and serve!

~This can certainly be placed in a food processor and blended to make a very tasty puree!

*Variations
-Use any kind of pasta or mediterranean couscous
-Try this with greens like spinach or collard greens
-Add fresh herbs at the very end
-Use onions, garlic or leeks interchangeably

*Storage
Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months

*Benefits
Chard is an excellent source of calcium,  vitamin C, E, B6 & K, fiber, potassium, magnesium, iron, protein, zinc and folic acid.  So good for you.

Milk contains calcium, protein, potassium, phosphorus, vitamins D, B12 & A as well as riboflavin and niacin.

Big & Little: Cauliflower Mac 'n Cheese

When I think of comfort food, I think of mac 'n cheese.

There are a million different variations of it.

I love every single one.

Really.  You can't go wrong with mac 'm cheese.

Big and Little are my versions of Adult and Baby recipes.

I added cauliflower for this one.

Actually I added roasted cauliflower because I roasted it before I knew what I was going to make.

I love roasted veggies.  Love! These were great in the dish.

However, for the sake of ease (I doubt most moms are going to want to take the time to roast veggies)
so the recipe varies to eliminate the roasting step.

Feel free to roast as I did.

If your family is cauliflower resistant then use less cauliflower (to make the flavor less apparent)
and boil instead of roast (out of sight, out of mind).

You could also puree it and it will blend into the cheese sauce.

*I use milk in this recipe, it is cooked and therefor widely believed to be safe for baby around 8 months

The beginning of both recipes starts as one big batch and then splits off to create
different variations for big and little.

Big & Little: Cauliflower Mac 'n Cheese
1 box elbow macaroni, I used Barilla Plus 14.5 ounces
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets the size of the elbows or smaller
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour (I used whole wheat)
16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (I came up a little short and added gruyere), shredded
8 oz cream cheese, room temp, cut into chunks
2 1/2 cups whole milk
a few grates of nutmeg
smidge of pepper

For the Big version
1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup shredded parmesan
salt, pepper
dash of hot sauce



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil your pasta in a large pot until soft enough for baby.
I usually go about 3 minutes over the directed cooking time.
In those last 3 minutes add your cauliflower to the boiling water.
Make sure both the macaroni and the cauliflower are mouth-mashable.
Drain macaroni and cauliflower and set aside.

In the same pot melt 2 tbs of butter over medium heat.
Add 2 tbs of flour and whisk vigorously
until the mixture thins and you can smell the yummy nutty scent.
This mixture of flour and fat is a roux.

Add about 1/4 cup milk and whisk it into the roux.
Steadily add the rest of your milk as you whisk away until it is all incorporated.
Continue to whisk over medium heat until the mixture thickens and starts to simmer.
Add your cheeses in and mix until melted.
Remove from heat.

Give your pasta and cauliflower a mix and add 2/3 to the melted cheese mixture.
Grate of bit of nutmeg, add a pinch of white pepper and mix.

This is where we split off to the different dishes.





For the Little Version:
Add the remaining 1/3 of the pasta/cauliflower mix and you are done.
This yields a yummy but not too saucy/ too cheesy meal.
You can puree or pulse in a food processor to desired consistency.

For the Big Version:
 Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper (we used both black and white),
perhaps more nutmeg
as well as a few dashes of hot sauce, all to taste.

Mix the parmesan and bread crumbs together.

Pour the mac 'n cheese into a casserole dish and top with bread crumb mixture.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the top is golden and the mixture is bubbly.

Enjoy!



*Variations for Little Version
-use different veggies like broccoli, asparagus, squash or carrots
-add fresh herbs or spices like parsley, sage or pepper
-top with fresh soft bread crumbs (simply place bread in food processor)
-add meat like chicken, turkey, pork or beef
-use a different size or shape pasta like orecchiette or even orzo



*Variations for Big Version
-use different veggies like...well anything really
-get creative with your cheeses, try gruyere, roquefort, smoked gouda or chunks of brie
-add caramelized onions or sautéed garlic
-try different fresh herbs & spices like thyme, parsley and sage
-add proteins like bacon, ham (yum!), lobster (oh fancy!) or sausage

*Storage
Of course you can refrigerate and and reheat mac and cheese but can you freeze it?
Yes, you can.
You can freeze directly in silicone muffin (or mini loaf) cups
or refrigerate in regular muffin tins until solid,
transfer to a freezer bag and freeze until you are ready to use.

*Benefits
Use noodles with whole grains for added benefits!

Cheese contains calcium, magnesium, zinc, selenium, folate and vitamins A, E, K and D.

Cauliflower is known to have cancer fighting properties as well as fiber, vitamin C, potassium and folate.

Milk contains calcium, protein, potassium, phosphorus, vitamins D, B12 & A, riboflavin and niacin.

Carrot & Broccoli Orzo

This dish actually includes chicken so it's a complete meal for your baby.

A little salt and I'm happy eating this myself.

Now don't rule out this dish just because the texture looks really chunky. 

First off, all of those chunks are really soft, allowing your little to mash it in their mouth.

Also remember that you can always puree your dishes to a consistency that works for your baby.

Left to right in the picture you see:

The original recipe,

After it's been pulsed a few times in a food processor

and blended to a smooth puree.

You can always make these recipes work for your little.

My apologies for the lack of preparation photos... I got caught up and didn't take them.

Oops!

Carrot & Broccoli Orzo (with chicken)

1/2 cup orzo

1 lb carrots, about 5 medium, peeled and sliced into rounds

2 cups broccoli florets

4 oz chicken breast, or 1/2 cup cooked diced chicken

Place your broccoli in the steamer with about an inch of water in the bottom of the pot.

Steam the broccoli until the stems are fork tender, this took me about 15 minutes.

They should be tender enough to mash with your fingers.

Remove the steamer basket but keep the water.

Run the hot broccoli under cold water (or submerge in ice bath) to stop the cooking.

Cut the broccoli to remove the florets like this, keeping the stems.  

Place the florets in a medium bowl and the stems in the food processor.

Place your carrots in the steamer, 

using the same water you used to steam the broccoli, adding more water if needed.

Steam until fork tender, about 15-20 minutes depending on the size.

Meanwhile, boil 1/2 cup of orzo until it's soft.

Remember that you don't want al dente for your baby, you want it mouth-mashable.

I cooked mine for about 15 minutes.

Drain when done and set aside.

When the carrots are done and cooled slightly

 you can add them to the broccoli stems in the food processor, 

keeping the water to cook your chicken in.

Add your chicken to the boiling water.

When the chicken is cooked all the way thru, add it to the food processor and puree.

You'll need to add some of the cooking liquid as you want the puree to be thinner than usual.

This is going to make your "sauce".

Pour the cooled puree into the medium bowl with your florets and stir in your orzo.

Enjoy!

Peanut eating "little trees" as a snack

*Variations

-Try this with a number of different veggies like cauliflower, asparagus, squash, or green beans

-Leave the chicken out or use another meat like turkey, beef or pork

-Substitute the orzo with another pasta, Mediterranean couscous or a grain

-Add fresh herbs like basil, parsley, cilantro or even dill

*Storage

Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

When reheating make sure to heat all the way thru and allow to cool for your little.

*Benefits

Carrots have loads of different kinds of carotenoids which work as antioxidants, convert to vitamin A,

boost the immune system and protect and enhance your eyes.

Broccoli is known as having cancer fighting properties, lots and lots of cancer fighting properties
as well as protein, fiber, potassium, calcium, vitamins C & A, folate,
magnesium, phosphorus and beta-carotene.
So good for you.

Chicken is a great source of lean protein.
It also provides potassium, phosphorus, niacin, calcium, iron, selenium and zinc.

Orzo may not be a nutrient powerhouse but it does provide your baby with some needed carbs, fiber, protein and iron.  There is nutrient-enriched orzo as well.

Last day to enter the giveaway HERE.