Overwhelmed with Chard in your CSA delivery? Fret no more! This chard almond sauce recipe is one that uses quite a bit of greens, and the flavors will have you making it over and over again.
Not many greens grow well in Las Vegas outside of Winter, but Swiss chard sure can thrive! I have a wild plant that has basically turned itself into a shrub, so I have more chard than I know what to do with. I had a similar problem about 2 years ago, which led to me making this sauce for the first time. When I posted about it in my stories I had many people begging for a recipe because their produce deliveries had given them tons.
I wanted to get measurements perfect and obviously get good photos for y’all, so now I’m here with the final version! This sauce is a great way to get a bunch of greens into your meal, whether you’re using it in pasta, as a spread on toast, or as a dip on a (vegan) cheese board. Just one cup of cooked chard can hold so many vitamins and nutrients!
Chard can sometimes be a bit thick depending on how young the leaves are, so to balance the flavor/texture a bit I opted to do a short-cut style blanch. I feel like this also helps with the feeling you can get on your teeth when you eat a bunch of spinach or raw chard if you know what I’m referring to. This sauce is similar in consistency to pesto but the flavors are definitely not the same! The green onions bring a brightness to the savory chard and the toasted almonds add some depth, it’s so dreamy.
Substitutions + Tips:
- Swiss chard – if you’ve never had chard it’s kinda like spinach and collards had a salty baby. So maybe throw celery into the parents as well, because it can be quite savory depending on how big the leaf is. Younger leaves will be more tender/neutral in flavor.
- Almonds – I used raw almonds here because I like toasting them to my liking and they don’t have any kind of added oil or salt to adjusting flavors to your preference is easier to do.
- Green onions – I love using these here because they are not as sharp as garlic and it allows you to add more without overwhelming the other flavors.
- Oregano – my oregano is THRIVING in my garden right now, so it was a welcome addition to this sauce. You can use dried oregano instead of fresh, the general rule of thumb is 1 teaspoon dried to 1 tablespoon fresh, so in this case you would use 2 teaspoons dried oregano, or start with 1 1/2 teaspoons dried so you can adjust to taste.
- White wine vinegar – this is to balance all of the savory with a little acid. If you do not have this on hand lemon juice will also work.
- Serving suggestions – as mentioned earlier, this works great as a pasta sauce, general spread or something to pair with cheeses and charcuterie!
Other recipes you may like!
Swiss Chard Almond Sauce
Overwhelmed with Chard in your CSA delivery? Fret no more! This Swiss chard almond sauce recipe is one that uses quite a bit of greens and the flavors will have you making it over and over again.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (230 g) raw almonds
- 10 ounces (300 g) Swiss chard, stems removed
- 1 cup (75 g) green onions, chopped
- 2 tablespoons (3 g) packed, fresh oregano leaves
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) water
- 3 cups (240 g) dried pasta, I used penne
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) reserved pasta water
- Vegan parmesan for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Heat a pan on the stove over medium heat, once hot, add almonds and toast for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally; until the skins start to brown and nuts are aromatic. Once nuts are toasted, transfer them to a plant to cool for a few minutes, and work on the chard.
- Place chard leaves in a large bowl, and pour roughly 2 cups (473 ml) boiling water over the leaves. Let sit for 2-3 minutes, until the leaves become softer and brighter green. Then strain warm water, rinse with cool water, and strain again.
- Into a food processor equipped with an s-blade, place almonds and pulse until finely ground, like coarse sand. Then, tear the chard into smaller pieces and add to the processer along with the oregano, white wine vinegar, salt, and pepper.
- Run food processor for 30 seconds, then slowly add the 1/2 cup (120 ml) water to the mixture while running. Run until the sauce is pesto-like in texture and appearance. You may need to scrape the sides of the processer pitcher down to get everything in.
- If using the sauce in pasta, prepare noodles according to package instructions, then strain liquid but save 1/2 cup (120 ml) of it for later.
- Place cooked pasta and sauce in the pot and stir to combine over low heat. Add pasta water a couple tablespoons at a time until your desired consistency is reached, heating for 2-3 minutes.
- Taste and season to your preference if necessary. Serve topped with vegan parmesan and enjoy!
Notes
- Almonds - I used raw almonds here because I like toasting them to my liking and they don't have any kind of added oil or salt to adjusting flavors to your preference is easier to do.
- Oregano - You can use dried oregano instead of fresh, the general rule of thumb is 1 teaspoon dried to 1 tablespoon fresh, so in this case you would use 2 teaspoons dried oregano, or start with 1 1/2 teaspoons dried so you can adjust to taste.
- White wine vinegar - this is to balance all of the savory with a little acid. If you do not have this on hand lemon juice will also work.
- Serving suggestions - as mentioned earlier, this works great as a pasta sauce, general spread or something to pair with cheeses and charcuterie!
