Silverbeet

One of the things we try to promote through our veg boxes is a bit of excitement around some of the more exotic veg that we can grow in the Illawarra. But what often goes unnoticed are the consistently performing veggies that just do their thing week-in, week-out, all year-round.

This week we’re celebrating silverbeet, one of those veg that just does its thing with little fuss. Silverbeet is a member of the chard family and is often called ‘swiss chard’. While the many members of the chard family have varying coloured stems, silverbeet is grown for its thick white stem and big dark leaves.

Silverbeet handles all weather conditions and is just as versatile in the kitchen as it is in the garden. A common use is to shred the leaves into and cook into a soup or pasta or baked into a classic spinach pastry. But don’t forget that the white stem is a great product in itself! In can be sliced and used as a celery type stalk in a cooled dish or can be smothered in oil and lightly baked along with the leaves.

Check out Kristin’s recipes down below for some inspiration!

Enjoy

Cal Champagne

Green Connect Farm Manager

In your box this week:

Silverbeet has a more earthy flavor than spinach, and can be harder to disguise for picky eaters, mixing it with sweet and salt is a good idea, like this pumpkin, sweet potato, chard and feta borek. These are great for lunch boxes. Inspired by a recipe from Green Kitchen:

Rainbow Chard, Sweet potato & Feta Cheese Börek
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 tsp cumin
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
100 g / 4 handfuls rainbow chard or silverbeet (finely chop the stalks and coarsely chop the leaves)
A small handful fresh parsley
2 tbsp lemon juice or 1 tsp sumac
200 g / 1 1/2 cup feta cheese
1 medium-sized sweet potato, cut in half, skin left on

Egg Wash
2 eggs
250 ml / 1 cup plain unsweetened yogurt
5 Tbsp olive oil

To Assemble
8 small sheets filo pastry (or 8 sheets rice paper)
Black and white sesame seeds or nigella seed

Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F bake mode and grease a baking tray or line it with parchment paper.
Transfer cut sweet potato to the baking sheet. Drizzle with a little oil and massage to coat. Place cut side down and bake for 25-35 minutes. Once cooked scrape out the flesh and mash with a fork. Heat the oil in a large frying pan on medium-low heat.

Finely chop onion and garlic, transfer them to the pan along with cumin and salt and sauté for 5 minutes or until the onion begins to soften.  Chop the chard and add to the pan along with parsley, season to taste with salt and pepper and sauté for a few more minutes or until the chard starts to wilt. When the chard is cooked, remove from the heat, stir through the mashed-up sweet potato, parsley and lemon juice and set aside to cool slightly, before stirring through the feta.

To prepare the egg wash, crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl, add the rest of the ingredients, and whisk together.  Add a few tablespoons to the filling and stir around, set aside the rest.
To assemble, layer 2 filo pastry sheets and brush the sheet with the egg wash and spread some of the fillings out evenly in a line at the bottom of the sheet. Fold in the edges and then gently roll the sheet into a log. Repeat with the rest of the sheets and filling. Transfer to the tray. Brush the Börek with the last egg wash and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until golden and crunchy.

Green Smoothie

I love having a Green Smoothie in the morning, so whenever I have access greens laying around that’s what I do.
You can put almost anything in there, but fruit like pineapple, apple, pear and lemon works well with silverbeet and kale.

Ingredients:

1 apple or pear
½ Avocado
1 lemon
1 kiwi fruit
1 cm ginger
1 cup herbs, mint. Basil or parsley
2 handfuls of greens, Silverbeet, Spinach, Kale or Chard
2 cups water and a handful of ice.

Blitz all together in a mixer until smooth and enjoy!