I was looking for a recipe to use some of the beautiful chard that I have in my garden. This sounded delicious and healthy. The original recipe called for spinach, but substituting the fresh chard was no problem. It turned out really delicious and is even better the next day when the flavors have had a chance to meld a bit more. I also added the tomato paste to the recipe to thicken it up a bit becuase I wanted it to be a side dish rather than a stew.
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt
pinch saffron
2 tsp sweet paprika
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp ground cloves
pinch cayenne pepper
two 15 oz cans chickpeas with liquid
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 small can chopped tomatoes
1/2 can tomato paste
1/4 cup golden raisins
1. In a large deep skillet boil 1 cup water. Add the chard and cook about 2 minutes until wilted. Drain the chard.
2. In a small bowl, mash minced garlic with 1/2 tsp salt and the saffron. Stir in the paprika, cumin, cloves, pepper and 1/4 chickpea liquid.
3. Add 2 Tbs olive oil to the skillet and heat. Add the onion and tomato and cook until softened. Add the spiced/garlic sauce and cook for 1 minute. Add the chickpeas and remaining liquid to the skillet along with the raisins and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes then add spinach and simmer another 5 minutes.
Source:Food and Wine, Sept 2008
