Ingredients: 

•  Generous bunch of Swiss chard with stems on

•  3 Tbsp. Butter

•  2 Tbsp. Flour

•  ½ qt. Milk 

•  Freshly-grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese, q.b. 

•  Gorgonzola cheese, q.b. (or other cheeses with sharp flavor)

•  Salt

•  Pepper

•  Nutmeg, q.b.

Directions: 

Wash the Swiss chard well. Put salted water on to boil. Cut the stems off the chard. When the water comes to a rolling boil, drop in the Swiss chard stems, lower the heat and cook the stems for just a few minutes. Drain the stems, saving the water to cook the Swiss chard leaves. Cut the larger chard leaves in half to get equal slices for cooking. Steam the leaves for just a few minutes in the boiling water (lower the heat to a simmer after you put in the greens). Drain the steamed Swiss chard and set aside.

Prepare a béchamel cream. Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Melt 2 Tbsp. of butter and stir in two or three Tbsp. of flour. Stir the mixture continuously as you gradually add about ½ qt. milk. Add nutmeg, salt and black pepper, all q.b. Stir in 3 Tbsp. of grated Parmesan or Pecorino. Set the béchamel sauce aside and prepare the Swiss chard.

Butter a baking dish and line it with the steamed Swiss chard stems and add a few of the leaves. Spread some of the béchamel over the chard and repeat with another layer of chard then béchamel. Crumble gorgonzola over the top. Bake for about 30 minutes. 

If you have leftover béchamel, cook some pasta al dente, then stir it into the remaining béchamel and put in a baking dish with tomato sauce on top. Add a sprinkle of Parmesan and some of the gorgonzola to create a tasty primo piatto or “first course.”

Buon appetito!