A yummy way to use some of that Silver Beet from your garden

I enjoy working in my vegetable and herb garden and I am very proud of everything I produce for the table.  However, I would love it to be a little more prolific than it is. That may require heaps and heaps of hours working in it ( I have so many other loves in my life that take my attention!) or really working out what is missing in the soil.
It might help if I actually tested the soil to find out what is lacking (i.e. what stops certain things from growing to a luxurious abundant end). I recently went to talk by gardening guru - Kay Reardon. She was very helpful and inspiring and if I put some of the knowledge I learned into practice it might help my crops improve. Watch this space!
One thing I seem to be able to grow is Silver Beet (or Chard). When I proudly said recently "my Silver Beet just keeps growing and growing" a dear friend put me in place by saying "everybody can grow silver beet" well that might be the case but it is a jolly useful vegetable to have constantly on hand in your garden.
Looking at my wonderful crop last week, I decided to research my vegetarian cookbooks for a recipe that used about two big bunches.

The following  is perfect for a main dish for vegetarians or a lunch dish for carnivores served with a side salad. I really like the lightness of the dish. You may wish to add extra tasty cheese to the sauce but I thought is was lovely the way it was.
Cannelloni with Chard filling

(from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone – Deborah Madison)  

Serves – 4-6

8 ounces of pasta – if using lasagne sheets - homemade is best

Béchamel sauce made with 1 ½ cups milk, 3 tbsp. butter, 3 ½ tbsp. flour, salt and white pepper

2 large bunches of chard (or silver beet)

1 ½ tbsp olive oil

1 onion – finely chopped

¼ cup finely chopped parsley

1 cup ricotta

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan

2 tbsp mascarpone or crème fraiche

1 tsp grated lemon zest

Salt and pepper and freshly milled nutmeg

Butter or olive oil

You can use cannelloni tubes or do what I did and use lasagne sheets – it’s easier than trying to stuff tubes. Cook pasta in fast boiling lightly salted water to just done. Watch they don’t stick together. Make béchamel sauce. Cook chard leaves in boiling salted water for 5 minutes, drain well and squeeze excess water and chop finely.

Heat the oil in a small pan, add onion, parsley and cook until the onion is soft. Add the onion to the chard and mix with the ricotta, half the Parmesan, the mascarpone, lemon zest and 1/8 tsp of nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Fill cannelloni tubes, or place chard mixture on a sheet of lasagne and roll up. Arrange in a greased lasagne dish. Cover with the béchamel sauce and remaining cheese. Bake until browned and bubbling – about 25 – 30 minutes.

 
Cover with the béchamel sauce and remaining cheese. Bake until browned and bubbling – about 25 – 30 minutes.
Serve with a salad.