fruity chard / bieta alla frutta

July 29, 2025December 25, 2025 | Simona

fruity chard on serving plate — ready to be served
(placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO)

Our current Cook the Books Club selection is the historical novel A Bakery in Paris by Aimie Runyan¹, which alternates between the story of Lisette and that of her great-granddaughter Micheline. Both lived in Paris. Lisette’s story is set during the German siege (1870-1871)² and subsequent Commune (1871)³, that of Micheline immediately after the end of WWII.

Lisette is the original founder and owner of the title’s bakery, which Micheline reopens, offering the usual assortment of French pastries, prepared based on Lisette’s recipes (documented in a notebook and provided at the end of some of the chapters) and her culinary academy training.

One of the pastries is croquembouche (pièce montée). Years ago I made a version of it where I used melted chocolate (70% cocoa) instead of caramelized sugar (zucchero caramellato) to bind the choux pastry, because “I don’t like the contrast between the hard caramelized sugar and the lightly crisp bignè shell, which segues immediately into the soft filling. Melted chocolate offers, in my opinion, the perfect binding material: it provides stability by hardening into a layer of the right consistency, so the progression of taking one bite is: 1) crack thin layer of chocolate, 2) break crisp bignè shell, 3) glide into creamy filling. Basically, heaven.”⁴

After her husband, Théo, dies fighting with the Communards, Lisette, pregnant, is expected to marry her first fiancé and go to Provence (Provenza) with him until after giving birth. She ends up not going and not marrying him (again), but I decided to stay there for inspiration.

Tarte aux blettes is a Provencal dessert made with Swiss chard. While I was not interested in replicating it (we don’t eat dessert), I played with the idea of adding a sweet note to a vegetable I like and eat regularly.

For my first try, I bought a bunch of rainbow chard at the Little Wing Farm stand⁵ outside Point Reyes Station while I was riding my bicycle. I had planned to stop there, so had a couple of bags in my backpack. The chard was kept in a tub and I didn’t realize until I took up a bunch how big it was, with long colorful stems (which I adore!) and large leaves. When I put it in the backpack, the top stuck out giving me, I am sure, a curious appearance when riding.

At the San Rafael farmers’ market, where I shop when in the Bay Area, some vendors offer slightly blemished or overripe fruit at a discounted price, and I usually get some to add to dishes, like this one. This is the season of stone fruit and I decided to try pairing the chard with white nectarine (pesca noce or nettarina) first. I then tried using a peach (pesca), peeled, and also apricots (albicocche). All the fruit worked well. The sweetness balances the light bitter nuance of chard and the result is a side dish that nods towards dessert without being overly sweet.

Print-friendly version of briciole’s recipe for Fruity chard

Ingredients:

1 pound / 450 grams rainbow chard or Swiss chard, stems included, up to 6-7 inches / 15-18 cm (if you have more, save them for another dish: do not discard them)
4 ounces / 112 grams red spring onion
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons / 30 ml extra-virgin olive oil OR 1 tablespoon / 15 ml extra-virgin olive oil + 1 tablespoon / 15 grams unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon Harissa spice mix
2 tablespoons / 30 ml warm water if needed
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
4 ounces fruit (e.g., nectarine, peach, apricot), clean weight

Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic.

Separate the chard stems from the leaves and chop the stems. Halve the leaves lengthwise, stack 5-6 at a time and cut them into 1-inch / 2.5-cm wide ribbons.

Warm up a 5-qt cast iron Dutch oven and add the olive oil. When hot, add the onion and cook on medium heat for 2 minutes, then add the stems and sprinkle the Harissa spice mix and thyme. Stir well and cover. Turn the heat down to medium-low.

Cook for 8 minutes or until the onion is soft, stirring often.

Add the garlic and stir. After 1 minute add the chard. Cover and cook for 1 minute to let the chard wilt, then stir. Cover and cook for another 7 minutes or until the chard is tender.

In the meantime, cut the fruit into 3/4 inch / 2 cm- side cubes. If using a peach, peel it first.

When the chard is almost cooked, add the fruit, stir and cook for 1 minute.

Remove from the heat, sprinkle the sea salt and stir. Transfer to a plate and serve.

Serves 3

close up of plated fruity chard — A closer look

I like to eat this side dish alongside a more decidedly savory one, like mixed vegetables with thyme⁶ or the roasted vegetable medley I prepare weekly using zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, mushrooms, roasted corn and garlic.

¹The book’s page on the publisher’s website
²The siege of Paris
³ The Commune of Paris
⁴ From briciole’s archive: profiterole
⁵ Little Wing Farm Instagram page
⁶ From briciole’s archive: Mixed vegetables with thyme

Click on the Play button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post

Cook the Books logo This is my contribution to the current selection of our Cook the Books hosted by Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. (You can find the guidelines for participating in the event on this page.)

The roundup of the event.

FTC disclosure: I have received the table linen free of charge from the manufacturer (la FABBRICA del LINO). I have not and will not receive any monetary compensation for presenting it on my blog. The experience shared and the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.

pesche a colazione / a peachy breakfast

August 14, 2012 | Simona

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

rye berries

Rye berries (chicchi di segale) are pretty. I discovered that a while ago, when I got a package of them as part of my monthly grain CSA share. I cooked them as I usually do hulled barley (dry toasting then boiling), then used them in this dish, and we liked the result.

A friend lent me her grain flaker while she was away and I enjoyed using it with various grains. You put the grains into the hopper and turn the handle which makes the rollers turn and flatten the grains. At this point, you can cook the flakes, but I add another step.

I recently purchased the book "The Art of Fermentation" by Sandor Katz. Katz is well-known for his research and writings on this fascinating topic (see this article on NPR about the book). In the book, I read about fermenting oatmeal and decided to apply the same principle to rolled rye (according to this page, rolled rye and rye flakes are synonyms):

Take a small container and add rye flakes (fiocchi di segale)
Add 1.5-2 times as much volume of water and mix (see Note below)
Loosely cover the container and let it sit for 24 hours (I put the container on top of the refrigerator), stirring a couple of times during the interval (at the end, the soaked rye flakes smell very lightly sour)

Note: you may want to start with twice as much water and then decrease the amount as needed to obtain the desired consistency of the cooked grains. Also, different grains absorb water a bit differently, so, for example, for oats I use twice as much water, while for rye, I use 1.5 times as much water.

When ready to prepare, empty the container into a saucepan, bring slowly to a boil and cook until desired softness. Cooking the fermented rye flakes takes a short time. The first time I made them, I was a bit worried that my husband would not like them: they smell earthy, almost smoky, quite different from oatmeal. He declared he liked them better than oatmeal. They are also more filling.

a colorful and flavorful breakfast for one

We finally get to the peaches. The breakfast bowl above contains the following layers (from bottom to top):

Cooked rye flakes: half a cup of flakes (about 2 oz. / 55 g) soaked in water for 24 hours as described above, then cooked until desired softness
Several tablespoons of homemade plain yogurt
One small peach, peeled and chopped
10-12 toasted pistachios (pistacchi), chopped

The glass contains a peach lassi made with the following ingredients (serves 1):

A medium peach, cut into half and stone removed
A cup of homemade kefir
Half of a Medjool date, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place the peach, cut side up, on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat, and bake for 15 minutes. Let it cool slightly, slip off the skin and put into the bowl of a blender or food processor together with any juice released during baking. Let it cool completely.

You can skip the previous step and simply peel and chop the peach into the blender or food processor bowl, so any juice released is saved.

Add date and kefir to the peach and blend until smooth. Pour into a tall glass and serve.

This flavorful and nutritious breakfast is a study of contrasts: crunchy pistachios, sweet and juicy peach, creamy and sightly tart yogurt, and hearty rye flakes.

This is my second contribution to Cooking With Seeds: Rye or Millet, an event created by Priya of Priya's Versatile Recipes and hosted this month by Simona of briciole (that is, me).

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

pesche a colazione

or launch the pesche a colazione audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

[jump to Comments]

peach, rye, breakfast, kefir

pesche a colazione

chicchi di segale

I chicchi di segale sono di un bel colore grigio-verde perla. L'ho scoperto un po' di tempo fa quando ne ho ricevuto un pacchetto nella mia cassettina delle granaglie. Li ho preparati come faccio di solito con l'orzo (tostati a secco e poi bolliti), e poi li ho usati in questo piatto con ottimo risultato.

Un'amica mi ha prestato il suo mulinetto per fare i fiocchi di cereali ed io mi sono divertita ad usarlo con orzo, avena e segale. I chicchi si mettono nell'imbuto, poi si gira la manovella che fa girare le due piccole mole di acciaio che schiacciano i semi. A questo punto i fiocchi si possono cuocere, ma io ho aggiunto un altro passaggio.

Da poco ho comprato il libro "The Art of Fermentation" di Sandor Katz. Katz è conosciuto per i suoi scritti su questo argomento affascinante (vd. questo articolo). Nel libro ho letto un paragrafo sulla fermentazione dei fiocchi d'avena e ho deciso di applicare lo stesso principio a quelli di segale.

Istruzioni:

Mettere i fiocchi di segale in un piccolo contenitore
Aggiungere 1,5-2 volte il volume di acqua e mescolare (vd. Nota qui sotto)
Coprire (senza sigillare) e lasciare riposare per 24 ore (io metto il contenitore sopra al frigorifero), mescolando un paio di volte durante l'intervallo (al termine, i fiocchi di segale hanno un profumo vagamento acidulo, tipo pasta madre, ma molto più leggero).

Nota: cominciate con l'usare il doppio del volume di acqua e poi, se necessario, diminuite la quantità per ottenere la consistenza desiderata del cereale cotto. L'assorbimento di acqua varia con la qualità di cereale, quindi, per esempio, per l'avena uso il doppio d'acqua, mentre per la segale uso una volta e mezzo.

Quando volete preparare la colazione, vuotare il contenitore in un pentolino, portare a bollore lentamente e cuocere fino a quando i fiocchi siano della morbidezza desiderata (non ci vuole molto tempo). La prima volta che li ho preparati temevo che a mio marito non sarebbero piaciuti: hanno un profumo molto terrestre, quasi affumicato, molto diverso da quello dei fiocchi di avena. Mio marito ha subito detto che i fiocchi di segale gli piacciono più di quelli di avena. Riempiono anche di più.

una colazione ricca di sapore

E finalmente arriviamo alle pesche. La ciotola della foto, porzione per una persona, contiene i seguenti strati (dal basso verso l'alto):

fiocchi di segale cotti: mezza tazza (120 ml / 55 g) di fiocchi ammollati in acqua per 24 ore e poi cotti come spiegato sopra
yogurt bianco fatto in casa (diversi cucchiai, a piacere)
una piccola pesca sbucciata e tagliata a pezzetti
una decina di pistacchi tostati e spezzettati

Nel bicchiere c'è un lassi alla pesca fatto con i seguenti ingredienti (per una porzione):

una pesca media, tagliata a metà e senza nocciolo
una tazza (235 ml) di kefir fatto in casa
mezzo dattero tagliato a pezzettini

Scaldare il forno a 180 C. Mettere la pesca con la parte tagliata in alto su una piccola lastra da forno foderata con un tappetino di silicone per forno e infornarla per 15 minuti. Lasciarla intiepidire un po' e poi rimuovere la buccia e mettere la pesca nel frullatore o robot insieme al sugo che può aver prodotto durante la cottura. Far freddare del tutto.

Potete saltare il passaggio precedente e semplicemente rimuovere la buccia dalla pesca, tagliarla a pezzi e metterla nel frullatore o robot insieme al succo prodotto.

Aggiungere il kefir e il dattero alla pesca e frullare fino a quando la bevanda sia omogenea. Versare in un bicchiere alto e servire.

Questa colazione gustosa e nutriente è uno studio di contrasti: pistacchi croccanti, pesca dolce e succosa, yogurt cremoso e acidulo e segale sostanziosa.

Propongo questa colazione all'edizione di Agosto dell'evento Salutiamoci, ospitato da Brii di briggishome che ha scelto come tema la pesca.

Questo post contiene la lista delle ricette contribuite all'evento.

E questo e il mio secondo contributo a Cooking With Seeds: Rye or Millet, (cucinare coi semi: segale e miglio), un evento creato Priya di Priya's Versatile Recipes e ospitato questo mese da Simona di briciole (che sono io).

Questo post contiene il riepilgo dell'evento.

frittata con pesche arrosto e caciotta fatta in casa / frittata with roasted peaches and homemade caciotta

September 18, 2011 | Simona

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano]

After the success of my gelato with roasted peaches, it was natural to try to use the same fruitful concept in a frittata, like I had done with strawberries (fragole). The result was just as excellent.

The first couple of times I made it, I used the same cheese as before, my homemade French Neufchâtel cheese, a bloomy-rind cheese (formaggio a crosta fiorita). But then I tasted my homemade caciotta and I thought it would work great in the frittata: I was right. I am planning to write more about caciotta: for now, suffice it to say that it is a kind of cheese produced in various regions of Italy that comes in many varieties. It is ripened for a brief period, and is soft in texture and mild in flavor. I called caciotta the very first pressed cheese I made.

Print-friendly version of briciole's recipe for Frittata with roasted peaches and homemade caciotta

Ingredients:

10-11 oz. ripe, tasty peaches
olive oil
6 pastured eggs (uova)
sea salt
1 oz. wedge of [homemade] caciotta, or similar cheese(e.g., Monterey Jack or Colby, plain)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat that is wider and longer than the sheet. Wash peaches and quarter them. Peel them now or after they are baked. Place peaches on the sheet on a single layer. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Let peaches cool while you prepare the eggs. If not done before, peel the peaches. Cut each quarter in half lengthwise and then slice each piece.

Oil a 10-inch skillet and warm up. Break the eggs in a bowl and whisk them lightly until just blended. Add a couple of pinches of salt and whisk briefly. Add the juice possibly released by the peaches during roasting plus enough water to make 3 tablespoons. Whisk lightly to incorporate.

Pour the eggs slowly into the skillet. Gently slide the peaches into the pan and arrange them so they are evenly distributed. Cook over low heat until the eggs are set. In the meantime, turn on the broiler. (If your oven allows it, choose the "low" setting.)

Cut the wedge of cheese into thin slices. When the edge of the frittata is set, evenly distribute the cheese on the surface. After the edge is well set, run a spatula under it and shake the frittata gently to ensure the bottom does not stick to the pan.

When the eggs are set, place the skillet in the oven for a couple of minutes, leaving the door ajar. Take the skillet out of the oven (don't forget that the handle is hot) and let the frittata rest for a few minutes, then slide it onto a serving plate. Cut into wedges and serve. As as is usual with frittata, you can store leftovers in the fridge and enjoy them the following day, at room temperature.

This frittata has everything: the sweetness of peaches, the savoriness of cheese, the silkiness of eggs. Given the results of my first two experiments, I am planning to continue exploring the realm of frittata with fruit.

This is my contribution to edition #301 of Weekend Herb Blogging, an event started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once and hosted this week by Graziana of Erbe in cucina (Cooking with Herbs).

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

frittata con pesche arrosto

or launch the frittata con pesche arrosto audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

peach, frittata, egg, cheese

[jump to Comments]

frittata con pesche arrosto e caciotta fatta in casa

Dopo il successo del mio gelato con le pesche al forno, c'era da aspettarsi che avrei provato a usarle nella frittata, come avevo fatto in precedenza con le fragole. Il risultato è eccellente. Le prime 2-3 volte che l'ho preparata ho usato lo stesso formaggio, il mio neufchâtel fatto in casa (un formaggio a crosta fiorita). Poi ho tagliato la mia forma di caciotta fatta in casa, l'ho assaggiata e ho deciso di usarla nella frittata: un'ottima scelta.

Ingredienti:

280-300 g di pesche mature
olio d'oliva
6 uova fresche codice 0
sale
30 g di caciotta [fatta in casa], o formaggio simile

Scaldare il forno a 175 C. Foderare una lastra da forno con un tappetino di silicone per forno che sia più lungo e più largo della lastra. Lavare le pesche e tagliarle in quattro. Sbucciarle ora o dopo averle passate in forno. Disporre le pesche sulla lastra e poi passarle in forno per 20 minuti. (La temperatura in gradi Fahrenheit che uso io, 350, è un po' al di sopra di 175 C e un po' al di sotto di 180 C. Ho deciso di specificare la temperatura più bassa poiché preferisco essere cauta. Potete lasciare le pesche in forno un paio di minuti in più.) Far intiepidire le pesche mentre preparate le uova. Se non lo avete fatto prima, sfilare la buccia dalle pesche, poi tagliate ogni quarto a metà per il lungo e ogni pezzo a fettine.

Oliare bene una padella (25 cm) e scaldarla. Rompere le uova in una ciotola e sbatterle leggermente. Aggiungere un paio di pizzichi di sale e incorporare. Aggiungere il succo emesso dalle pesche durante la cottura in forno, se presente, più abbastanza acqua da arrivare a 45 ml. Mescolare per incorporare il liquido nelle uova.

Versare lentamente le uova nella padella, poi far scivolare le pesche nella padella e distribuirle in modo uniforme. Cuocere a fuoco dolce fino a quando le uova sono rapprese. Nel frattempo, accendere la parte alta del forno. (Se il vostro forno lo permette, scegliere l'opzione a calore basso.)

Tagliare il formaggio a fettine sottili. Una volta che il bordo delle frittata si è rappreso, distribuire il formaggio sulla superficie. Passare una spatolina sotto il bordo e scuotere la padella (delicatamente) per evitare che la frittata si attacchi.

Quando le uova si sono rapprese, mettere la padella nel forno, lasciando lo sportello socchiuso, per un paio di minuti. (Se avete scelto l'opzione a calore basso, probabilmente ci vorranno 3 minuti.) Tirare fuori la padella (fare attenzione: il manico scotta) e far riposare un paio di minuti, poi mettere la frittata su un piatto, tagliare e servire. Come al solito con la frittata, potete conservare gli avanzi in frigo e mangiarli il giorno dopo a temperatura ambiente.

Questa frittata ha tutto: pesche dolci, formaggio saporito, uova soffici. In base ai risultati positivi dei miei primi due esperimenti, ho in programma di continuare ad esplorare il territorio delle frittate con frutta.

Questo è il mio contributo all'edizione numero 301 di Weekend Herb Blogging, un evento creato da Kalyn di Kalyn's Kitchen, organizzato ora da Haalo di Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once e la cui versione italiana è organizzata da Brii di briggishome, e ospitata questa settimana da Graziana di Erbe in cucina.

Questo post contiene il raccolto dell'evento.

gelato di pesche arrosto / roasted peach ice cream

August 30, 2011 | Simona

After roasting strawberries (and using them to make gelato and frittata), I turned my attention to peaches, which is easy since I get them in my weekly CSA box. The peaches from Neukom Family Farm are justly famous. Having a steady supply of them throughout the season means that I can carry out experiments like the following one.

I started with the idea that I would roast peaches and use them to make ice cream. The inspiration for the custard part came from the recipe for Peach or Nectarine Ice Cream in my beloved (and recommended) ice cream book: Frozen Dessert by Caroline Liddell and Robin Weir. I didn't want the peaches to be utterly soft: I wanted the resulting ice cream to have a bit of fruit texture. After a few tries, I settled on this version (which of course may be further changed in the future).

Ingredients:

1 lb (450 g) ripe and flavorful peaches (indifferent peaches make an indifferent gelato, so please look for tasty fruit)
1/2 cup (100 g) [ultra-fine] sugar, divided
1 teaspoon (5 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup (240 ml) non-fat milk (latte scremato)
1 large or extra-large pastured egg
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 ml) vanilla extract of good quality
1 cup (240 ml) heavy whipping cream (panna da montare)

Heat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat that is wider and longer than the sheet, so no juice can escape from any side. Wash and cut in half the peaches — you'll most probably use two — then remove the stone (nocciolo). Place the peaches in the baking sheet cut side up. Take a tablespoon (15 ml) of the sugar and distribute it among the hollows left by the stones. Do the same with the lemon juice. Put the peaches in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Let peaches cool.

As you can see in the photo, the hollow fills with juice while baking. Empty the juice in the food processor. Remove the skin, put peaches in the food processor and pulse a few times: you want small pieces of peach (pesca) to remain detectable. Pour in a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Heat the milk in a saucepan until quite hot (but not boiling). In a bowl, whisk together egg and remaining sugar. Temper the egg with a bit of the hot milk, then slowly add the rest, while whisking. Put the saucepan on gentle heat, and stir the ice cream base almost constantly. You will notice a thickening. When a film forms over the back side of the stirring spoon (I use a wooden one), draw your finger across. If the line stays clear, the custard is ready. (If it overheats, it will curdle.) Remove the pan from the heat and place in a cold water bath, while stirring the custard. Once cool, cover and place in the fridge until thoroughly chilled.

When ready to churn, add vanilla extract and cream to the custard and stir well to incorporate, then add the peaches and stir some more. Churn in your ice cream maker until it reaches the consistency of gelato. Spoon into serving bowls, serve immediately and enjoy. After plating the ice cream, do not leave what is left over in the machine, but transfer it into a plastic container, cover the surface with wax paper, then put on the lid. Place in the freezer. Take out of the freezer half an hour or so before eating, so the gelato has time to soften.

This gelato has a delicate pastel color and a nice peach flavor. The first time I made it, I served it to six very obliging guests and the deep silence that fell around the table after I had finished passing the last bowl was a welcome signal of success. Are you wondering whether there is going to be also a roasted peach frittata? You bet!

This is my contribution to the event Veggie/Fruit a Month, the vegetarian event created by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan's Recipes and hosted this month by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook, who chose peaches as theme.

This post contains the roundup of the event.

Click on the button to hear me pronounce the Italian words mentioned in the post:

gelato di pesche arrosto

or launch the gelato di pesche arrosto audio file [mp3].

[Depending on your set-up, the audio file will be played within the browser or by your mp3 player application. Please, contact me if you encounter any problems.]

gelato, ice cream, peach