In an effort to neither waste nor want, I felt the need to devise a recipe for all the chard stems knocking about my kitchen these days. Great green plumes of chard with bright yellow stems are proliferating in our garden, and I love to eat them simply sauteed in lots of good olive oil with garlic and red chile, and maybe a few raisins and pine nuts tossed in. This is so silky in the mouth and tastes like Italian chlorophyll. The stems—crisper and rougher—are usually chucked into the compost pile, though this is sacrilege to the legions of fans who like them stirred into mashed potatoes and buckwheat pancakes, baked in gratins, simply roasted and even pickled. I don't do much baking, as you know, but of late I've had a bee in my bonnet about making a galette—one of those free-form rustic tarts that basically scream farmhouse chic. This simple dough can be wrapped around anything from wild nettles to fresh peaches with a perfectly French insouciance.

After eating a big bowl of the aforementioned sauteed chard for brunch on Sunday, I was left with an equally large pile of stems which I wrapped in a paper towel and popped into the vegetable drawer of my fridge (where, thankfully, they did not molder forgotten into the usual pile of mystery slime). I withdrew them yesterday with the galette in mind and made short work of it.

I sauteed the stems with some garlic, shallots, fennel seeds and a splash of verjus and spread them onto a buttery dough with a few anchovies, some Gruyère and a bit of Parmesan. Verjus? you say. It's the juice of unripe grapes—a tart and sprightly condiment, something between wine and vinegar. Try some here.

Don't stress about the galette dough. It's extremely forgiving. I used this gluten-free flour mix and although the dough seemed wet and kept falling apart, it actually emerged quite crispy and delicious. It needs to chill for at least an hour before you roll it out, so bear that in mind if you want to make this recipe. I made the dough first, then left it in the fridge while I prepared the filling.

The chard stems have an earthy flavor that stands up nicely to the rich, salty anchovies and cheese. Instead of Parmesan, you can use pecorino or any other sharp aged cheese. Substitute a little pancetta or bacon for the anchovies, if you prefer. And instead of chard stems, try almost any assertive greens—kale, beet tops, even cabbage. This versatile recipe lets you make the most of whatever you've got.