Recipe: Chard, White Bean and Sweet Potato Gratin and Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Cookies

How exactly did she manage to take a large

(really...we're talking football-sized)

(no, I have not actually laid eyes on a football in...decades years and I barely have a penchant for exaggeration, why do you ask?)

orange vegetable in it and two (yes TWO) bunches of Jurassic-sized green leaves and end up with something so...anemic?

I know that's what you're thinking.

White casserole judgment. I see it in your eyes.



That's fine.  You can totally be that way.  But you know who's going to be eating a QUARTER of this cheesy creamy casserole for dinner?  While still ending up with less saturated fat than the average American eats in an hour?

FYI - all you haters out there. It's not you.

To everyone else who's decided to leave their food color prejudices at the door.  Let's talk.



This casserole has more layers than I do on the warmest of summer days and just barely less than I typically don when it's fifty degrees outside (ten).  Impressive.

In fact, if I could find a way to wrap myself in it for those in-between days.  I totally would.  And then I'd eat my way out when I got hungry.  It would be the best.

(Don't worry. I'd be wearing a thermal layer underneath.  I may get dressed with my windows open and a construction crew in viewing distance every day.  But I have some sense of propriety.  Totally swear.)

And then in addition to actual  physical layers...it has layers of flavor.  Sweet from the sweet potatoes, salty ooey gooey from the cheese, earthy from the chard and white beans.  Get a little bit of each in every bite and you'll pretty much be set for life.

?(Or at least lunch and dinner.  Which, if you count the seconds till your next meal like some of us do, are basically life.)



And then, since you've eaten so many shades of beige colors of the rainbow in one sitting, you'll totally have earned dessert.

Something soft and winter-spiced with magical bits of melty chocolate in it.

I suggest these cookies.

Yeah, they kind of have an orange vegetable in them. But if you want to eat cookies for breakfast and call it a health food, then these are the kinds of measures you have to take.

Your best interest.  That's what I have at heart.



Chard, White Bean and Sweet Potato Gratin
Serves 4 as a main, 6-8 as a side, adapted from Spilling the Beans

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 bunches swiss chard, leaves and stems separated and both cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp AP flour
• 2 cups almond milk (or regular milk)
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
• 2 cups cooked white beans
• nutmeg, to taste
• 1 cup coarsely shredded gruyere

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet set over medium-high heat and cook the onion for a few minutes.  Add the chard, sprinkle with salt, and cook until the chard wilts and there is no moisture left in the pan.  Transfer to a bowl.
2. Add the butter and flour to the skillet and whisk together to make a paste.  Whisk in the milk, then add the garlic and bring to a simmer.  Boil for 2 minutes, whisking.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove from the heat.
3. Preheat the oven to 400.  Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Spread half of the sweet potatoes in the baking dish.  Top with half the beans, a sprinkle of nutmeg, salt and pepper, half of the greens mixture, half the cheese and half the sauce.  Layer with the rest of the potatoes, beans, greens and sauce and top with the rest of the cheese.
4. Cover with tin foil and bake for about 45 minutes, then take the tin foil off and bake for another 15 minutes, until golden and bubbly.  Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 2 dozen, adapted from Fake Food Free

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup pureed sweet potato
• 1/2 cup oat flour (just pulverize oats in food processor!)
• 3/4 cup AP flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 2/3 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and butter until fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined. Mix in the sweet potato.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together the flours, baking soda, salt, and spices. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl. Scrap the sides and mix until everything is combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
3. Place cookies by the teaspoon or tablespoon full onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly browned. Remove from the oven, allow to rest 1 minute and then transfer to a cooling rack. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

I got this cookie recipe from Lori as part of the annual International Blogger Cookie Exchange that she is cohosting!   For more cookies, check out the round-up on her's and Andrea's sites the week of December 12th.