Swiss Chard artichoke dip and leftovers

Saturday night I tried out a recipe I've been wanting to try for a long time. It's supposed to be an appetizer, but I couldn't think of anything else to serve it with, and it seemed pretty much like a meal in itself (4 food groups, filling, probably enough calories for a meal!) so we ate it as a main course. I think I originally got the recipe from Canadian Living, but I changed so many ingredients (feta for ricotta, yoghurt for sour cream, mozzarella for parmesan) it bore little resemblance to the original.

1 bunch Swiss Chard

2 cans artichoke hearts

3/4 c. white kidney beans

1/2 c. feta

1/3 c. yoghurt

1/2 c. mozzarella, grated

2 t lemon juice

1 clove garlic (probably use more!)

salt and pepper

1/4 c. parmesan

Chop the chard and wilt it in a pan. Drain it then puree it in a blender with all the other ingredients except for 1 cup artichokes, mozzarella and parmesan. (This was harder than it sounds and takes a while.) Stir in the rest of the artichokes and the mozzarella; put it in a shallow-ish oven-proof dish, sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake 350 for 35 minutes. Serve with nacho chips or pita pieces.

We didn't come close to finishing this between the two of us, so tonight we made pasta and tossed most of the rest with the pasta (I actually preferred it this way!). I served it with barbecued chicken thighs and zucchini slices, both brushed with a mix of garlic scape pesto and basil pesto (frozen from last summer).

Mmmm, barbecued zucchini. Tastes like summer.

-Kathy