Rainbow Chard Pasta
This flavorful gluten-free pasta recipe uses both the stems and leaves of rainbow chard creating a delicious vegan meal in less than 30 minutes. Sweet raisins, sauteed veggies, and pasta are all tossed with buttery pine nuts and cheesy nutritional yeast.
I’ve always thought that rainbow chard was one of the prettiest dark leafy greens. Those perfectly wrinkled leaves, gathered in a bouquet of brightly colored stems, just beg to be plucked from the farm stand. Rainbow chard grows all summer long here on the Peninsula and is a regular in my SisterLand Farms CSA share. So, it seemed like the perfect veggie to make into a flavorful pasta recipe that uses both the colorful stems and the leaves.
The fun thing about this recipe is that it uses an entire bunch of rainbow chard. The leaves cook way down, so you’re getting a ton of veggies, all in one dish, without feeling like a rabbit. The flavor combination (which was inspired by Joshua McFadden’s Six Season’s cookbook) is both bright and sweet from vinegar-soaked raisins and buttery from pine nuts and nutritional yeast.
Only 30 minutes from share to table, rainbow chard pasta is the perfect weeknight meal to enjoy all summer long.
o Takes only 30 minutes or less to make but tastes gourmet
o Waste-free, uses both the stems and leaves
o Super flavorful with minimal ingredients
If you like this recipe, please give it a 5-star rating below. It’s also fun to see your creations on Instagram. Please share and tag me @vegeta.full. And, if you want to save this recipe for later, be sure to pin it on Pinterest!
Ingredients for Rainbow Chard Pasta
Ingredients:
o ½ cup of raisins
o 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
o water
o 1 medium yellow onion, small diced
o 1¼ teaspoons of kosher salt, divided
o 4 garlic cloves, minced
o ¼ teaspoon of crushed red pepper
o 1 bunch of rainbow chard, stems thinly sliced (dried ends removed) with the leaves cut lengthwise in half and sliced into ½ inch strips
o ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
o ¼ cup of toasted pine nuts (see note)
o 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
o 6 oz of chickpea pasta spirals (8 oz. if you have a very large bunch of chard)
Makes 2-3 servings.
Method for making Rainbow Chard Pasta
Steps 1-4:
1. Pour the vinegar into a small bowl and add the raisins. Barely cover with very hot water and let sit while you cook the chard and pasta.
2. Bring a medium pot of water to boil and cook the chickpea spirals according to the package directions, drain and set aside.
3. In a large saucepan, over medium-high heat, sauté the onion in 2 tablespoons of water sprinkled with 1 teaspoon of salt, until translucent and slightly golden. Be patient here. This will take about 7 minutes for sweet, tender onions. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the onions begin to dry out.
4. Add the garlic and red pepper to the onions and cook until fragrant, one minute.
Steps 5-6:
5. Drain the raisins and add them to the onions along with the chard stems, other ¼ teaspoon of salt and pepper. Cook until the stems are tender but not mushy, 3 minutes.
6. Add the chard leaves and 2 tablespoons of water to the pan. Stir all the vegetables together. Cover and steam for 3 more minutes.
Step 7:
7. Pile the pasta into the pan and toss with pine nuts and nutritional yeast. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy as a quick gourmet seasonal meal when summer chard is plentiful.
Note: Toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium-high heat on the stovetop, stirring frequently, until spotted and golden brown.
Other seasonal veggie recipes to make this summer:
Rainbow Chard Pasta (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
Instructions
- Pour the vinegar into a small bowl and add the raisins. Barely cover with very hot water and let sit while you cook the chard and pasta.
- Bring a medium pot of water to boil and cook the chickpea spirals according to the package directions, drain and set aside.
- In a large saucepan, over medium-high heat, sauté the onion in 2 tablespoons of water sprinkled with 1 teaspoon of salt, until translucent and slightly golden. Be patient here. This will take about 7 minutes for sweet, tender onions. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the onions begin to dry out.
- Add the garlic and red pepper to the onions and cook until fragrant, one minute.
- Drain the raisins and add them to the onions along with the chard stems, other ¼ teaspoon of salt and pepper. Cook until the stems are tender but not mushy, 3 minutes.
- Add the chard leaves and 2 tablespoons of water to the pan. Stir all the vegetables together. Cover and steam for 3 more minutes.
- Pile the pasta into the pan and toss with pine nuts and nutritional yeast. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
Toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium-high heat on the stovetop, stirring frequently, until spotted and golden brown.
For step-by-step instructions with photos, see blog post!
Nutrition Facts
Calories
330.35Fat (grams)
9.03Sat. Fat (grams)
0.77Carbs (grams)
55.88Fiber (grams)
9.27Net carbs
46.62Sugar (grams)
20.12Protein (grams)
13.27Sodium (milligrams)
849.99Cholesterol (grams)
0.11Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators.
Rainbow Chard Pasta (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
