Kale, Chard & Mushroom Gratin

Kale, Chard, & Mushroom Gratin

Recipe by Jenn Robbins of Good Foods Kitchen

April 14, 2018

Ingredients

½ lb shitake &/or oyster mushrooms - destemmed & chopped/torn - save scraps!    
2 each leeks - whites sliced, middle part (light green) rough chopped - keep separate!
2 each green garlic - bottom 3rd minced, rest chopped - keep separate!
1 oz butter
¼ cup dry sherry
3 cup heavy cream
2 each bay leaves
Pinch black peppercorns
2 bunch kale, destemmed & chopped
2 bunch Swiss chard, destemmed & chopped
1 oz butter
As Needed cooking oil - your favorite high heat oil (canola, veg, grapeseed, etc)
As Needed salt
As Needed black pepper
½ cup sour cream
Splash sherry vinegar

Method:

To prep the cream base:

1. Over medium-high heat in a sauce pan, sauté the leek middles (light green), chopped green garlic, and mushroom scraps.
2. Once the bottom of the pan starts to collect some fond (color), deglaze with the sherry.  Reduce it until almost dry.
3. Add the cream to the sauce pan, and reduce heat to low-medium heat so it just simmers.  Cook the mushroom cream for ~30 minutes.  Ideally, it will only reduce by about ⅓.  When done, puree on high speed in a blender until smooth.  Set aside.  (This can be done in advance).

To prep the veggies:

1. Chop the kale & chard stems!
2. Pre-heat a Dutch oven or wide, shallow pot (rondeau) over high heat.  Add 2T oil, and a pat of butter once hot.  Sauté the mushrooms, working in batches if needed to avoid overloading the pan.  Stir frequently, and once slightly wilted, season with salt & pepper, and chile powder if desired.
3. When all of the mushrooms are done, reduce the heat to medium-high.  Add the chopped leeks & green garlic.  If the mushrooms absorbed most of the fat, add more butter so the leeks & garlic can be wilted. 
4. After ~2 minutes of cooking, add the chopped kale stems.  Sauté another minute then add the chard stems & chopped greens.
5. Once the greens have been added, stir frequently until wilted.  Season with salt & pepper.
6. Add the mushroom cream and cook the greens until tender.
7. Off heat, fold in the sour cream & sherry vinegar - adjust seasoning if needed.  Pour the gratin mixture into a glass or ceramic baking dish.

**the recipe can be cooked entirely up to this point in advance.  If you choose to, simply cool for finishing at a later time**

To finish:

1. If serving immediately after cooking, pre-heat the oven to broil.  Broil the gratin until golden & bubbling.
2. If gratin has been cooled, pre-heat oven to 350 & cover with foil.  Bake until heated through, stirring occasionally (~30 minutes).  Then turn oven to broil & uncover - broil until golden & bubbling.

Makes ~10c

Roasted Sweet Peppers & Okra with Heirloom Garlic Aioli, Slow Roasted Tomatoes & Garlicky Croutons

Ingredients   

3-4 ea sweet peppers (variety of bell, frying, etc), sliced into ½” strips
¾ lb okra, halved
As needed olive oil
2 Tbl kosher salt
½ cup aioli (recipe below)
¾ cup roasted tomatoes (recipe below)
1 ½ cup garlicky croutons (recipe below)

Method

1. Pre-heat a large cast iron skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Working in batches if needed, add enough oil to the skillet to lightly coat it.   Immediately add the sweet peppers and season with salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but not soft.  Remove the peppers from the skillet (into a bowl), and continue to cook okra, using the same process as the peppers.  Be careful to not overcook the okra - high/fast heat will help keep it from getting slimy!
2. When the okra is done, toss it into the bowl with the peppers.  Add the roasted, chopped tomatoes and adjust seasoning as needed (salt, pepper, red wine vinegar).
3. To serve (hot or room temperature), smear the aioli onto a platter, place pepper & okra mixture on top, then finish with croutons.  
4. ENJOY!

Heirloom garlic aioli (w/lemon)

Makes ~ 2 cups

Ingredients

2 each egg yolks
1+ each garlic clove*
1 ½ Tbsp water
1 each lemon - zest & juice
¾ tsp kosher salt
1 cup EVOO
¾ cup veg/canola/other neutral oil

*(large - heirloom preferred), if subbing store-purchased, use 2 smaller cloves

Method

1. Paste the garlic clove until relatively smooth with a small pinch of salt. In a small non-reactive bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients and whisk until the yolks are light yellow in color and frothy.  You may also use an immersion blender or food processor for this recipe if desired. Slowly whisk in the oil, making sure to start the emulsification properly before adding all of the oil. Adjust seasoning as needed.  Keep chilled.

Slow roasted tomatoes

Makes ~1 ½ c

**This base recipe is one that I make every summer to keep on hand during the winter.  The only difference is that I do not chop or add any additional seasoning before canning.**

Ingredients

4 each sliced tomatoes, cored & halved (quartered if large)
As Needed EVOO
As Needed salt
As Needed pepper
12 each thyme sprigs                       
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp crushed red pepper

Method

1. Pre-heat your oven to 350.  Place a resting rack onto your roasting pan, and scatter the thyme sprigs on the rack.
2. Toss tomatoes, oil, salt & pepper together in a bowl until the tomatoes are thoroughly coated.
3. Place the tomato halves, cut-side down, on the roasting rack and bake until the skins are very wrinkled and the tomatoes are significantly dryer/smaller in size (~⅔ to ½ the size of the original tomatoes), but still juicy!  This will take at least 1 hour.
4. Once roasted and cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard.
5. Rough chop the tomatoes and mix with vinegar, crushed red pepper, and additional salt & pepper if needed.  At this time, also add another ~1T of EVOO back into the tomatoes.  Keep chilled

Garlicky croutons

**you will need the oven to produce these croutons, so make them at the same time you do the roasted tomatoes**

Ingredients

4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp EVOO
2 each garlic cloves, smashed
10 each thyme sprigs
4 cup bread - torn into small bite-size pieces

Method

1. In a small sauce pot, combine the first 4 ingredients and melt until the butter is just starting to brown & smell nutty and aromatic.
2. Remove the garlic from the butter mixture (depending on its tenderness, you may be able to save it for a roasted garlic application).  Toss the oil/butter/thyme sprigs with the torn bread, seasoning with salt & pepper, then spread evenly (not stacked) onto a baking pan.  Cook in the oven until golden and crispy.  When cool, remove the thyme stems.
3. To store, you may leave at room temp in an airtight container or freeze!