Dishing Up the Dirt

Zucchini Swiss Chard & Chickpea Stew

This light and simple stew is perfect for a quick summertime dinner. And while I know it can be hard to think about cooking a pot of hot stew in the middle of the hottest season of the year, you’ve got to trust me on this one. This meal is full of bright flavors and will fill you up without weighing you down. I love when the flavors of the season can transform such a basic recipe into something magnificent. This is going to be a “recipe of the week” for our CSA members because they’re receiving a lot of zucchini and Swiss chard these days. I hope wherever you are that you can find the ingredient for this stew at your local farmers market or grocery store. This meal pairs well with a glass of crisp white wine and a baguette of good quality bread.

Cheers from Tumbleweed Farm

Zucchini Swiss Chard & Chickpea Stew

Prep Time: 15 minutes    Cook Time: 20 minutes    Serves: 4

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (or olive oil)
  • 1 medium sized yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme (woody stems discarded)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1 medium sized green zucchini, sliced into half moons (about 1/2 inch thick)
  • 1 medium sized yellow zucchini, sliced into half moons (about 1/2 inch thick)
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 cups cooked chickpeas
  • 3 cups thinly sliced Swiss chard leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tsp grated lemon zest
  • pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
  • additional salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

  1. Heat the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and bay leaf. Cook for about 1 minute longer. Pour in the wine and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook until most of the liquid evaporates. Add the zucchini, stock and a hefty pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook until the zucchini is tender, about 8 minutes.
  2. Add the chickpeas and chard leaves. Continue to cook until the chard wilts down a bit. Season with the lemon juice, lemon zest, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

Notes

*Use this recipe as a guide and adjust measurements and ingredients as necessary


Leave a Reply

3 thoughts on “Zucchini Swiss Chard & Chickpea Stew

  1. Meg Jordan says:

    made this last night. Yum! I had everything on hand, so it was a quick meal. Thanks for the recipe!

  2. EB says:

    This was really good! I didn’t have fresh thyme or vegetable stock, so substituted one teaspoon dried Italian seasoning and chicken stock, but followed the recipe otherwise. What a great way to use garden zucchini and swiss chard. Even my picky husband who doesn’t necessarily go for meatless meals loved it. This will be part of our regular rotation!

  3. Denette says:

    This was really good and used up the rest of my chard from my garden. I had the wrong wine, used it anyway. I didn’t have a bay leaf so used some rosemary and sage. Happy with how it turned out. Thanks for the recipe.

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