Recipe: Chard with garlic and dried cranberries

Serves 4 to 6.

Note: If you aren't growing chard yourself, your best source is a farmers market. By the time chard gets to the grocery store, it's lost much of its oomph. To toast sunflower seeds, warm them in a dry sauté pan over medium heat until fragrant. From Beth Dooley.

• 1 lb. chard, trimmed

• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil

• 2 garlic cloves, smashed

• Pinch of crushed red pepper

• Juice of 1/2 lemon, to taste

• 1/4 c. toasted sunflower seeds (see Note)

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Remove the stems and ribs from the chard leaves. Cut the stems into 1/4-inch pieces and the leaves into 1/4-inch strips. Rinse the leaves in cold water and shake out but do not dry.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Add the oil and then toss in the garlic, crushed pepper and the chard stems. Cover and cook about 1 minute, then add the leaves and sauté, stirring until the leaves are well wilted, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Nutrition information per each of 6 servings:

Calories86Fat6 gSodium150 mg

Carbohydrates8 gSaturated fat1 gCalcium43 mg

Protein3 gCholesterol0 mgDietary fiber2 g