Hello!

I am thinking ahead to Thanksgiving and how to make life easier for the meals just before and after the main event. One can’t be bothered to make breakfast the day of or the day after (I can’t even step foot in the kitchen for a few days after Thanksgiving…unless it’s to eat leftovers). While this is not a quick, throw together recipe, it will pay off in the end when you can pull a healthy and delicious breakfast out of the refrigerator or freezer. The muffins themselves aren’t overly sweet so I think they could also serve as a side dish if you leave off the oat and brown sugar topping.

I should also note that no, these don’t end up tasting like Swiss chard. The orange flavor is most evident with a little hint of the saffron in the background. I used closer to 8 ounces of greens in my first round of testing and I still didn’t pick up on much chard flavor. Enjoy!

Swiss Chard and Orange Oat Muffins (adapted from here)
makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon + 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
• 6 ounces (about 10 medium to large leaves) Swiss chard, de-stemmed and roughly chopped
• Pinch of saffron
• 1 cup + 1/3 cup old fashioned rolled oats, divided
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1-1/2 cups milk of choice (I have used both whole and soy milk with good results)
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/2 cup raisins, roughly chopped

Directions:

• Adjust oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 400 degrees. Liberally spray a 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
• Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a 12″ non-stick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the Swiss chard and cook, stirring constantly, until the leaves are wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a colander set over the sink and cool slightly. Press on the greens with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Transfer to a cutting board and chop fine. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
• Heat the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil over medium-low heat in a small saucepan until just warmed, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, add the saffron, and allow to cool. Transfer to the bowl with the Swiss chard and set aside.
• Take 1 cup (4 ounces) of oats and grind into a fine flour. This works best in a spice or coffee grinder but a small food processor also works. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl and set aside. Take the remaining 1/3 cup of oats and mix with the brown sugar in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
• To the bowl with the oat flour, add the all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and whisk to combine.
• In the bowl with the Swiss chard and olive oil, add the eggs, honey, milk, orange zest and raisins. Whisk to thoroughly combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and fold to just combine without overmixing. Note: the batter will look a bit looser or wet than you might be used to – this is expected. Equally divide the batter between muffin tins until it almost reaches the top. Top each muffin with the oat & brown sugar mixture and transfer to the oven. Cook for 14-16 minutes (I needed 16 minutes), rotating once half way through, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean or with just a crumb or two attached. Allow to cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes and then remove and transfer to a cooling rack.
• To store: after they have cooled completely, the muffins can be refrigerated in an air-tight container for 3-5 days, although they will dry out a bit. They can also be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil for 3-6 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before using.