You may have noticed a theme here with all the “make ahead” dishes I’ve been sharing recently. I am, in fact, getting ready to host a rather large gathering at my home on Christmas. (Ricki, the Cheese Queen laughs at me when I say it’s a large gathering (20), because she regularly hosts parties with 50 -100 people. So, everything’s relative and maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing.) What’s your idea of a big gathering?
I have been scouring the internet for recipes, and I found this cheesy one. It’s gluten-free and it can be made ahead, frozen and then cooked on the big day.
Warning: After I made this dish, I realized that it was very time consuming and somewhat expensive. It tasted yummy, but I don’t know if it’s worth the time and the cost (9 bunches of kale!). So, you might want to use frozen chopped kale.
Creamed Kale and Gruyere Gratin
Based (loosely) on recipe at Good Housekeeping.com
Serves 8
Ingredients:
2 lb. Tuscan (curly) kale, stems discarded, leaves chopped into 1/2 inch pieces (derived from 9 bunches of kale, assuming each bunch weighs approximately 10 ounces)
Kosher salt
pepper
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 c. half-and-half
3 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
4 tablespoons cornstarch (or arrowroot if you prefer) (optional for keto diet)
Pinch cayenne
Directions:
1. Fill large bowl with ice water. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt. In 2 batches, cook kale until tender, about 4 minutes.
Transfer kale to ice water, then to colander or sieve.
Using clean towels, squeeze kale very dry.
2. Heat butter in large skillet on med. Add onion; cook, covered, stirring occasionally until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic; cook, stirring, 1 minute.
Add half-and-half and bring to a simmer.
If you will be serving it right away:
Preheat oven to 400F.
3. Make a slurry with equal parts cornstarch (or arrowroot) and water. Stir in and remove from heat. (If doing keto diet, you can skip this step.)
4. Stir in Gruyere, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until melted.
5. Fold in kale.
6. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan on top.
7. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
If you will be freezing it:
After step 2 –
3. Stir in Gruyere, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until melted.
4. Fold in kale.
5. Bring it to room temperature.
6. Freeze in freezer bag.
7. When ready to serve: Thaw in refrigerator.
8. Make a slurry with 4 tablespoons of cornstarch and 4 tablespoons water. Heat up the kale mixture and stir in the slurry. (If doing keto diet, you can skip this step.)
9. Pour into shallow 1 1/2-quart baking dish; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.
10. Bake until golden brown, 15-20 minutes.
Recipe for printing:
Creamed Kale and Gruyere Gratin
Serves 8
Ingredients:
2 lb. Tuscan (curly) kale, stems discarded, leaves chopped into 1/2 inch pieces (derived from 9 bunches of kale, assuming each bunch weighs approximately 10 ounces)
Kosher salt
pepper
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 c. half-and-half
3 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
4 tablespoons cornstarch (or arrowroot if you prefer)
Pinch cayenne
Directions:
1. Fill large bowl with ice water. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt. In 2 batches, cook kale until tender, about 4 minutes.
Transfer kale to ice water, then to colander or sieve.
Using clean towels, squeeze kale very dry.
2. Heat butter in large skillet on med. Add onion; cook, covered, stirring occasionally until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic; cook, stirring, 1 minute.
Add half-and-half and bring to a simmer.
If you will be serving it right away:
Preheat oven to 400F.
3. Make a slurry with equal parts cornstarch (or arrowroot) and water. Stir in and remove from heat. (If doing keto diet, you can skip this step.)
4. Stir in Gruyere, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until melted.
5. Fold in kale.
6. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan on top.
7. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
If you will be freezing it:
After step 2 –
3. Stir in Gruyere, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until melted.
4. Fold in kale.
5. Bring it to room temperature.
6. Freeze in freezer bag.
7. When ready to serve: Thaw in refrigerator. Preheat oven to 400F.
8. Make a slurry with 4 tablespoons of cornstarch and 4 tablespoons water. Heat up the kale mixture and stir in the slurry. (If doing keto diet, you can skip this step.)
9. Pour into shallow 1 1/2-quart baking dish; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.
10. Bake until golden brown, 15-20 minutes.
