Reminiscent of the stuffed cabbage of yore, the flavour profile of these stuffed chard smacks of cozy fall. It looks all fancy, but everything comes together surprisingly quickly. If desired, you can use turkey or pork sausage and brown rice.
Time-saver tip
For larger grains, such as wild rice and spelt, it’s a very good idea to soak them for several hours before cooking. This will slash the cooking time by about a third. If not soaking the wild rice, add roughly 20 minutes to the simmering time.
Sausage-Rice Stuffed Chard with Walnut Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (125 mL) wild rice, uncooked
- 3/4 lb (340 g) cooked chicken sausage, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup (80 mL) dried cranberries
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 2 Tbsp (30 mL) apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp (15 mL) fresh thyme
- 8 large Swiss chard leaves
- 1 cup (250 mL) low-sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup (125 mL) walnuts
- 2 Tbsp (30 mL) maple syrup
- 1 tsp (10 mL) lemon zest
Nutrition
Per serving:
- calories358
- protein19 g
- total fat15 g
- sat. fat2 g
- total carbohydrates44 g
- sugars23 g
- fibre7 g
- sodium441 mg
Directions
01
In small bowl, place wild rice, cover with water, and let soak for at least 4 hours.
02
Drain rice and place in pan with 2 1/2 cups (625 mL) water and a couple pinches of salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, covered, until grains are very tender and some have burst open, about 30 minutes. Drain any excess liquid.
03
Stir together rice, sausage, cranberries, green onions, cider vinegar, and thyme.
04
Slice off stems from chard leaves and fillet off any thick ribs running on the backside of the leaves. Place two chard leaves side by side so there is about 25 percent overlap. Scoop about 1 cup (250 mL) rice mixture onto bottom third of leaves and roll up burrito-style, tucking in sides as you go. Repeat with remaining leaves and rice stuffing.
05
In large skillet, place chard rolls and pour in broth. Bring to a simmer and heat, covered, for 5 minutes.
06
Into blender container, pour 3/4 cup (180 mL) broth from skillet and add walnuts, maple syrup, and lemon zest; blend until smooth.
07
Serve chard rolls topped with walnut sauce.
Matthew Kadey, MSc, RD
Matthew Kadey, MSc, RD, is a nutrition writer and recipe developer. He’s also the author of Rocket Fuel and Muffin Tin Chef.
READ THIS NEXT
SEE MORE »
Tourtière AU Cerf
Tourtière is, for me, the dish that best represents Québec. It can be traced back to the 1600s, and there’s no master recipe; every family has their own twist. Originally, it was made with game birds or game meat, like rabbit, pheasant, or moose; that’s one of the reasons why I prefer it with venison instead of beef or pork. Variation: If you prefer to make single servings, follow our lead at the restaurant, where we make individual tourtières in the form of a dome (pithivier) and fill them with 5 ounces (160 g) of the ground venison mixture. Variation: You can also use a food processor to make the dough. Place the flour, salt, and butter in the food processor and pulse about ten times, until the butter is incorporated—don’t overmix. It should look like wet sand, and a few little pieces of butter here and there is okay. With the motor running, through the feed tube, slowly add ice water until the dough forms a ball—again don’t overmix. Wrap, chill, and roll out as directed above.
Artichauts en Barigoule
My love of artichokes continues with this classic recipe, one of the best ways to eat this interesting, underrated, and strange vegetable. Frozen artichoke hearts are a time-saving substitute, though the flavour and texture of fresh artichokes are, by far, much superior and definitely preferred.
Cervelle de Canut
Cervelle de canut is basically the Boursin of France, an herbed fresh farmer’s cheese spread that’s a speciality of Lyon. The name is kind of weird, as it literally means “silk worker’s brain,” named after nineteenth-century Lyonnaise silk workers, who were called canuts. Sadly, the name reflects the low opinion of the people towards these workers. Happily for us, though, it’s delicious—creamy, fragrant, and fresh at the same time. Cervelle de canut is one of my family’s favourite dishes. It’s a great make-ahead appetizer that you can pop out of the fridge once your guests arrive. Use a full-fat cream cheese for the dish, or it will be too runny and less delicious.