There's never a week I go without having greens in the house. Spinach, kale, and chard are always in rotation. I also always have pots of greens growing on my patio. When I saw this recipe, I knew I wanted to do something similar but with greens. This chard bake is a solid base that you could easily add herbs and spices as you see fit. White beans and cans/jars of stewed tomatoes are also always stocked in my pantry. During the summer months, you could make your own tomato sauce and use that in place of the canned tomatoes.
White Bean Chard Bake
An easy pantry meal featuring creamy cannellini beans paired with fresh chard and canned stewed tomatoes. Perfect with a crusty slice of bread!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
- Category: Main Course
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 3 cups lightly packed shredded chard leaves
- 1 ½ cups cooked cannellini beans (drained and rinsed if using canned)
- 1 15oz can stewed tomatoes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup whole wheat panko or breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Heat a medium, oven-safe skillet or cast iron pan over medium-low heat. Add the olive oil to the pan, followed by the garlic. Cook the garlic until fragrant and golden; 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the chard, turn the heat to low, and cook until the chard just begins to wilt, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Stir the cannellini beans, stewed tomatoes, salt, and pepper into the chard mixture. Sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until the tomato sauce is bubbling. Place the dish under the broiler if desired to brown the breadcrumbs more.
Notes
Tips & Tricks: Make the greens ahead of time, like this garlicky green component.
Stock up: get the pantry ingredients you will need: White beans, stewed tomatoes, chard
Nutrition: see the information.
Links: Inspired by this recipe.
Chard Bake
variations
This chard bake is a really nice base for multiple variations. Greens and beans are always a solid combination whether it's in stews, bakes, or grain bowls. A few ways to vary this recipe:
Greens: swap out the chard for your favorite greens. A few of my favorites include kale, collards, and spinach. This would also be good with roasted cauliflower or broccoli.
Spice: Stir in chili powder, smoked paprika, or even sambal oelek. You can add really any type of spice you might like/have on hand.
Cheese: I like to leave this vegan because it's a great go-to meal with the refrigerator is a bit empty. However, like in the recipe that this was inspired from, you could crumble feta or goat cheese on top before baking.
Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Explore Chard
I tend to choose kale over chard when it comes to cooked greens, but chard is easy to find year-round and just as easy to grow. Chard cooks well and is a solid green for stews, grain bowls, and bakes. Don't forget to save the stems- they are nice in stir-fries or made into pickles.
Red Kuri Squash Curry with Chard
Swiss Chard and Spicy Peanut Sauce Spring Rolls
Garlicky Greens and Goat Cheese Omelette
Paula says
This looks wonderful! I've tried similar things on my own and never thought of tomatoes mixed in, I think that might be exactly what was missing.
In the last sentence of the first paragraph of directions you wrote "Stir in the stir". I assume you meant "Stir in the chard" but assuming really fools me often so I wanted to check.
★★★★★
Erin Alderson says
Ah shoot- fixed! Thanks for the catch!
Izzy Bruning says
This looks so delicious!
Izzy | Pinch of delight
David says
This looks delicious. If I wanted to add roasted cauliflower or broccoli, at what step during the process would I add it to the pan? Also, I am a newbie cook, so please excuse my ignorance: would I roast the cauliflower/broccoli in the oven ahead of time, and then add to the pan, or simply cook it in the pan with the other ingredients?
Thank you for your help. I've tried several of our recipes, and they have all been wonderfully delicious.
Erin Alderson says
No worries! I'd roast it ahead of time and then add it to the pan right before baking. You could also sauté the brassicas before adding the garlic (instead of roasting) and let it soften a bit. This might speed up the process.
David says
Thanks, Erin! Much appreciated. Can't wait to give this recipe a whirl.
Adrienne says
I was a little sceptical when I threw everything in my skillet. It seemed like it might be watery or bland. Boy was I wrong! Went by the recipe with fantastic results fast. Thank you!
LInda says
This recipe has become a staple in my house. We have it nearly every week and still haven't gotten tired of it. And that's coming from two meat-eaters!
Lacey says
I love this dish so much. I use navy beans, add some red pepper flakes with the garlic, and a splash of red wine with the chard. SO freaking easy and good.
Jen says
I liked the idea of this, but as written I knew it would be bland. It was. It was also watery. I made it again tonight, but I added a diced onion with the garlic (and tripled the garlic). Then I added the tomatoes and beans (with an extra 1/2 cup of mashed beans to thicken the sauce), salt, pepper (and red pepper flakes), and a splash of red wine vinegar. I added the chard last. Since I made bread, I left off the breadcrumbs. Much better.
★★★