use every last bit

cutting the "spine" out of the leaf: make sure you
cut along the inside of it!

one of the current trends in restaurants right now is "nose-to-tail" eating, wherein the chefs use every bit of the animal possible to cook different dishes for your meal. i like to take this concept one step further to my use of vegetables. in the summer when we compost outside, it's easy to let go of a few leftover bits of fruits and veggies. in the dead of winter, we eat a lot more hearty greens like kale and chard. since the greens make up the majority of the leaf, it usually means throwing away the "spine" of the plant. i choose to instead buy chard over kale (Rainbow Chard for the fun colors, to be exact), and then use the tasty spine bits like any other vegetable in my dish. they can be sauteed, blanched, or fried, and will absorb any flavor you add to it (it can be bitter, so err on the side of extra flavor like garlic or ginger). 

cut the spine completely out and cut the greens
as you like

enjoy!!

save the chard stems for other dishes!! (optional
to store in a reused gelato container)