Rainbow Chard & Wheat Berries Recipe

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).

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: Jeanine Donofrio

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

Mix together your mustard oil, cook your wheatberries, poach your eggs, set aside. (see notes for specific instructions).
In a medium skillet, heat a small drizzle of olive oil. Add the chopped scallions and cook for a minute or so.
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).
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