Tamales Wrapped In Swiss Chard Recipes

Steps:

• Cut stems from Swiss chard. Finely chop stems and leaves separately.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease six 6-ounce or eight 4-ounce timbale molds or muffin tins. Use 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs to coat them.
• Place bacon in a heavy skillet over low heat. When it turns golden, add chard stems, leeks and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until vegetables are tender but not brown. Transfer to a bowl.
• Add chopped Swiss chard leaves to skillet, increase heat to medium-high and cook until leaves are wilted. Add leaves to bowl. Mix in 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs and egg yolks. Beat whites until they hold peaks but are still creamy. Fold in. Season with salt and pepper and stir in nutmeg.
• Transfer mixture to prepared molds. Sprinkle remaining breadcrumbs on top. Bake 20 minutes. Unmold and serve hot.

Steps:

• 1. Prepare the pork. Mix the purchased red salsa with the shredded pork. Prepare the ranchera sauce. Prepare the tamale dough. If made ahead and refrigerated, bring the pork, sauce, and dough to room temperature about 1 hour before using. 2. In a large pot of boiling water, blanch the chard leaves until pliable, 40 seconds. Drain and cool. With a sharp knife, cut out about 2 inches of the thick center rib from each leaf. Cover leaves with a damp towel to keep moist. 3. Put 1 chard leaf on a flat surface. Put about 2 tablespoons of dough in the center of the leaf and spread into a 1/2-inch-thick rectangle. Put about 2 tablespoons shredded pork on the dough. Put 1 more tablespoon of dough on top of the meat, and spread to cover the meat. Fold the leaves overlapping on all sides to make a package. (The blanched leaves are tender and will cling together.) Repeat with remaining chard leaves. 4. Put about 3 inches of water and a coin in the bottom of a large steamer. (A rattling coin means there's still water in the pot.) Line the steamer rack with foil. Arrange the tamales, folded side down. Cover with foil and tuck a kitchen towel over the top. Put on the lid. Bring to a boil and steam tamales about 1 hour, or until the dough is firm and easily pulls away from the leaf. To serve, heat the sauce and spoon about 1 tablespoon of warm sauce on top of each wrapped tamal. These tamales do not freeze well, but can be refrigerated 2 to 3 days and reheated in the steamer. From "1,000 Mexican Recipes." Copyright 2001 by Marge Poore. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.