Swiss Chard and Cheese Omelet

My garden Swiss chard plant is prolific this spring, and since it's colorful and nutrition loaded leaves are free for the picking, I'm adding it to my breakfast menu with a Swiss Chard and Cheese Omelet.

Swiss chard is milder than collard greens and cooks in a fraction of the time. It's not as delicate in flavor as spinach, and not as soggy -- so you get some texture in each bite. Even the brightly colored stems are tender and edible. Chard comes in a variety of colors, from all green to red stemmed, and even a red wine color for the whole plant.


I made a Breakfast Frittata (click here for recipe) last weekend and added a handful of sauteed chard. I've even added chard to my cheesy Baked Pasta with Cauliflower entree (video recipe, click here.) I usually roughly chop the leaves and give it a quick 2 minute saute in a teaspoon of olive oil to soften. You can substitute oil with a couple tablespoons of water and just cook a few minutes until leaves wilt and water cooks out.

You could add the sauteed Swiss chard to a simple egg scramble, but I think it pairs with cheese for an interesting spin on the typical Diner breakfast Spinach Omelet. For this omelet I used 99c only Store shredded mozzarella cheese, but you could use any favorite.

You can't get much cheaper than eggs as a main recipe ingredient. And you will use very little of more expensive cheese.

You can follow this recipe and make a regular spinach omelet -- or, to add some extra fresh flavor to your morning omelet, give The 99 Cent Chef's Swiss Chard and Cheese Omelet a go.

Ingredients (one omelet)

• 2 to 3 eggs - I made mine with 2 medium sized eggs.
• 1 teaspoon milk - optional to mix into eggs.
• Handful of Swiss chard - about a cup, roughly chopped. Okay to substitute with fresh or frozen (thawed and squeeze/drained) spinach.
• 1/4 cup of shredded or sliced cheese - any favorite, I used mozzarella.
• 2 teaspoons of cooking oil - I used olive oil. One teaspoon to saute chard, and one teaspoon to fry the omelet. Okay to use as little oil as you are used to, including canned cooking spray.
• Salt and pepper to taste. 

 Directions
Wash and rinse a handful of Swiss Chard, then chop. Heat one teaspoon of oil in a pan and add chopped Swiss chard (or spinach.) Saute 2-3 minutes until soft and wilted.

Meanwhile, whisk 2 eggs together in a small bowl for your omelet. I like to add a teaspoon of milk into the eggs -- make your egg omelet base any way you like it.

There are several ways to make an omelet. I've seen the fancy chef way: it's almost like making a soft egg scramble and rolling the egg over the filling, like you would fold a burrito. I do mine simple, just pour in the egg and let it cook a minute; add the fillings; cook until egg liquid it almost gone, then fold it in half. Sometimes it sticks and breaks and leaks -- most of the time it doesn't.

So first, into your favorite egg frying pan over a medium heat, add a teaspoon of oil. Swish oil around to coat the pan. Add egg mixture and allow to cook a minute. Next add the Swiss chard on one half of the omelet and cheese on the other side.

Let the egg cook until almost all the egg liquid is gone -- the omelet surface is glistening but still slightly damp, about 3 minutes. With a spatula loosen 1/2 of the omelet, then lift and fold -- cheese onto the chard side. Season with salt and pepper to taste (you can season anytime during cooking process.) Cook the omelet for another minute or so. You can make a small slice into the omelet to check for desired doneness.