| 1 | This can be either a hot side dish or a room-temperature salad. |
| 2 | Warm the olive oil in a pan with the garlic and chile peppers. |
| 3 | Once the garlic slices are brown, remove them and set the oil and peppers aside. |
| 4 | Separate the chard stems from the leaves. |
| 5 | Cut the leaves into large pieces and wash them. |
| 6 | Trim the uneven ends off the stems. |
| 7 | Then, to make the stems as tender as possible, peel off the thin, transparent outer skin from each stem. |
| 8 | Catch the edge of a knife under the top layer of skin, and pull it down the length of the stem. |
| 9 | It sometimes helps, especially if the stem is cured, to first cut the stem in half lengthwise. |
| 10 | Peel both sides of the stems, cut them into 2-inch lengths. |
| 11 | Then lengthwise into narrow strips. |
| 12 | Peel the carrots, slice them into long, ?inch diagonals, then into narrow strips. |
| 13 | Bring 4-to-5 quarts of water to a boil, and add 4 teaspoons of salt. |
| 14 | Briefly cook the chard stems and the carrots separately until each is tender--about a minute for the carrots, 2-to-3 minutes for the chard. |
| 15 | Remove them from the water and set them aside. |
| 16 | Plunge the chard leaves into the water and cook until they are tender, 3-to-5 minutes, depending on the quality of the chard. |
| 17 | When they are done, remove them to a colander. |
| 18 | Press against the leaves with the back of a wooden spoon to get rid of the water then put them in a bowl with the stems and the carrots, and toss them with the olive oil. |
| 19 | Season with salt and serve with vinegar or slices of lemon. |
| 20 | Deborah madison - prodigy guest chefs cookboo |
