Chard Chips

Rachel here.

So, I was going to write a post for today about these amazing cupcakes I made for John as a Valentine's Day treat. He's a vanilla vanilla man (as in vanilla cake with vanilla frosting) and I found a recipe that used 6 egg whites instead of 2 whole eggs, generating the fluffiest, pillowiest little cupcakes I've ever put in my mouth. I also found a whipped frosting recipe which served as the perfect cloud-like topping for these treats. When I sat down to write, though, I realized that by the time you all read this, you'll probably have made your way through a whole box of chocolates--either from someone who has a crush on you or to celebrate your single status on the day dedicated to love. When I eat a whole box of chocolates (or, you know, half a batch of cupcakes...), I usually find myself jonesing for something savory the next day. Oh, and nutritious. I really like to follow up sugar binges with vegetables, thereby creating a zero sum equation in my head (or some such logic).

Enter chard chips.

You've probably heard of kale chips (I feel like they're all the rage, at least around these parts). Our neighbor gifted us with four bunches of chard the other night when she stopped by to borrow a measuring cup and spoons for her daughter's birthday cake. Not really paying attention, I just assumed it was kale because she's given us bunches from her garden several times in the last few months.

With 20 minutes to kill before our friend arrived to watch Max so we could go on a date, I washed the chard and then all three of us sat on the kitchen floor tearing it from its stalks into bite-sized pieces. Into the salad spinner it went until it was super dry and, from there, into a big bowl where I tossed it in olive oil and sea salt. John spread the chard on a baking sheet (at which point we both realized it was chard instead of kale...not sure why it took us so long since the two really do look pretty different from each other) and then put it into the oven at 350 degrees. Ten minutes later, when the edges had started to brown, we pulled it out.

Oh. My. God. Good.

Like, so good.

Like, pumpkin seeds on crack good (though, now that I've re-read that sentence, I'm pretty sure pumpkin seeds on crack is gross...but whatever, you follow).

And so easy! And so quick! And so good FOR you!

So grab a bunch of chard the next time you're at the market and whip up some chard chips. You'll be smiling and munching through your daily dose of vegetables.