Rainbow Chard & Wheat Berries

rainbow chard and wheatberries / loveandlemons.com

Grains & greens. Avocado & eggs… I could probably stop blogging right here and be happy eating this meal every day. Or at least in theory. In reality, I need variety otherwise I have a way of wrecking foods for myself. (One year in college, I ate plain oatmeal 2x a day — breakfast and lunch — and now I can’t stand the sight).

rainbow chard and wheatberries / loveandlemons.com-cropped rainbow chard and wheatberries / loveandlemons.com

The beauty of the grains and greens meal is that it can be changed up a thousand different ways. (Although, I get it — oatmeal can be changed up too. By the time I learned that it was far too late).

Today’s green: beautiful rainbow chard. And my grain of choice: chewy & nutty wheat berries. Sauces like pesto or sun cheese would be delicious here, although this time I kept it super simple and just mixed up a little dijon vinaigrette. If you haven’t heard, chard & mustard are a match made in heaven.

This simple plate is made a little fancier with a poached egg or two.

rainbow chard & wheatberries

 
Author:
Serves: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • small drizzle olive oil
  • ¼ cup chopped scallions, (the white parts)
  • 1 bunch chard, chopped, coarse stems removed*
  • mustard oil (see below)
  • ½ cup cooked wheat berries (or quinoa, farro, etc)
  • ½ avocado, chopped, w/ a squeeze of lemon
  • a few sliced radishes
  • optional: poached eggs
  • optional: toasted & chopped almonds
mustard oil:
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
  • 2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar
  • salt & pepper
Instructions
  1. Mix together your mustard oil, cook your wheatberries, poach your eggs, set aside. (see notes for specific instructions).
  2. In a medium skillet, heat a small drizzle of olive oil. Add the chopped scallions and cook for a minute or so.
  3. Add the chard and a pinch of salt and pepper. Use tongs to move the chard in the pan so that the uncooked parts start to wilt. Add ½ of the mustard oil and stir the chard to lightly coat. Remove chard from the pan just before it's completely wilted. (It'll continue cooking a bit and you don't want it to become soggy).
  4. Plate the wheat berries with the chard, avocado, radish slices and poached eggs. Sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper and drizzle on the rest of the mustard oil. Top with toasted almonds (not pictured, but delicious).
Notes
Cook wheatberries: soak overnight. Drain, rinse, then simmer in a pot full of lightly salted water for 45-60 minutes until they're soft yet chewy. Drain, then serve. Store any extra in the fridge for up to a week. (1 cup dry makes about 2 cooked cups).

Poach eggs: Crack room temperature eggs separately in tiny bowls and have them ready. Heat water in a medium pot until just below boiling (to the point where you see tiny bubbles on the bottom and sides of the pan). Add a good splash of white wine vinegar, then swirl the water. Drop 1 egg in. Gently move the water to ensure it's not sticking to the bottom of the pan. Don't touch it for about 3 minutes, then use a slotted spoon to scoop it out. (I prefer to do 1 egg at a time, but you can do 2 if you're a pro).

*save your extra chard stems for another use (recipe coming soon).

Plates from: Canvas, Forks from: Q Squared

17 comments

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Rate this recipe (after making it):  

  1. M.callan
    09.06.2015

    This recipe was divine. My husband is not a fan of Swiss chard but he loved this recipe.

  2. Just made this dish and it was amazing. Instant favorite. Thank you.

  3. Love swiss chard, but even more than that I love the egg on top of that bowl. Some of my favorite ingredients are in this dish, that means I must make this.

  4. Gemma from gemmachew.com
    04.06.2014

    Oh this looks wonderful. Simple, healthy and delicious! The best kind of meal 🙂
    xx
    gemma

  5. I love simple meals like these! I’m a huge fan of rainbow chard–and that EGG! Can’t get over that picture of the yolk oozing out.

  6. Since farro is my new favorite thing – I’m so happy it can be used as a substitute! I also love the idea of the poached egg. It will make this rich and decadent. I can’t wait to try it, looks delish!!

  7. Hanna from supersimplevegan.blogspot.com
    04.05.2014

    avocado, always. !!!

  8. Mmm looks delicious! I love the combination of poached eggs and greens… and of course avocado. Beautiful photos as usual.
    Love,
    Spice and Smile

  9. This is an absolutely gorgeous dish and a perfect spring-time meal. Love the bright vinaigrette with grains and greens.

  10. Kristin from blog.kristinfleming.com
    04.04.2014

    Stunning work. Looks so yummy.

  11. Eileen from hampiesandwiches.blogspot.com
    04.04.2014

    Sometimes the simplest food is best, right? Especially when it’s as beautiful as this! I especially love that perfect egg.

    • jeanine
      04.04.2014

      thanks 🙂 “Perfect” eggs are really tough to capture!

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.