Toaster Oven Recipe for Cheesy Chard and Chorizo Casserole

Dark leafy greens such as Chard are incredibly good for you but it can be quite difficult to get picky eaters to try them. This casserole recipe "hides" the Chard by blending it into a tomato sauce and cooking it into a delicious cheesy Chorizo casserole. Whole grain pasta ups the fiber and nutrition in this tasty meal that even the pickiest of eaters won't balk at.
The toaster oven cooks this casserole up beautifully. The close proximity of the heating elements provides beautiful browning which just makes everything taste better.
Ingredients
3 cups of dry whole wheat pasta shells, or other pasta of your choice
1/2 pound of Chorizo sausage, removed from the casings
1 large red onion
4 ribs of celery
6 large garlic cloves, smashed and skins removed
6 cups of roughly chopped Chard with stems, well packed
1 tablespoon of dried thyme
1 tablespoon of dried basil
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1/4 cup of good quality brandy or cognac
2 cups of low-sodium chicken stock, homemade is of course best
1 can (28 ounces) of whole San Marzano tomatoes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 pound of good melting cheese, Mozzarella or Gruyère work well in this recipe
Directions
Cook the whole wheat pasta in boiling, salted water for 5 minutes. The pasta should still be very firm. Drain, reserving the pasta cooking water for later use. Put the cooked pasta in an oven safe casserole dish that will fit into your toaster oven and set aside.
Heat a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Break the Chorizo sausage into small pieces and put into the pot. Cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked sausage to the casserole dish, leaving the excess fat in the pot.
Remove the skin and stem from the red onion and cut it into quarters. Cut the celery into quarters. Put into your food processor work bowl fitted with the multipurpose blade. Pulse until roughly chopped. Transfer the onion and celery to the cooking pot with reserved Chorizo fat. Add the whole garlic cloves. Cook over medium flame until the onions brown slightly, this ought to take about 10 minutes. Add the chopped fresh chard, thyme, basil and oregano and cook everything for an additional 2 minutes.
Turn the heat off and add the brandy and chicken stock. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up all the brown bits off the bottom of the pot (there is a lot of flavor in those bits stuck to the bottom of the pan!) Add the tomatoes and 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta cooking liquid. Heat to a simmer. Continue to cook the sauce for 45 minutes to an hour.
Use you food processor fitted with a shredding disc to shred the cheese. Set aside. Heat your toaster oven to 400 degrees F.
Move the cooked sauce to the food processor and pulse until well blended. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Add the blended sauce to the casserole dish and mix well. Top with the shredded cheese and bake for 30 minutes. Enjoy!