Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, hands down. I like how it’s all about sharing food with family and friends. My family has always maintained a pretty clear set of expectations about what constitutes the proper menu. That of course includes turkey with all the trimmings–mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, creamed onions, a relish tray with celery and black olives, cranberry sauce. Another time-honored family tradition is creamed spinach–a Campbell’s soup recipe that goes way back. I’ve tried to make it from scratch a number of times; this year I made a celery veloute loosely based on a winning dish from Top Chef Masters for the base of the casserole, which includes chopped spinach, parmesan cheese, and slivered almonds. My version was good, but I have to admit that the Campbell’s version (3 packages chopped spinach, drained well, 2 cans cream of celery soup, one can parmesan, one package slivered almonds, mixed together and baked at 350 until well-heated through–I think I have that about right) is pretty hard to beat. And the formula means it’s always what you expect.
This year, though, I tried another new greens dish with fresh kale from our plots in Grinnell’s Community Garden. It was as fresh as you can get it: I picked it, brought it right home, and started cooking it. I was inspired by some of the greens I had in New Orleans a few weeks before Thanksgiving. I wanted to do this dish meatless, since some vegetarians were at the table (we had seventeen people in all). The key to this recipe is as much in the method as in the ingredients.
Braised kale
3-4 large bunches of lacinato (also known as dinosaur or black kale), chopped
1-2 shallots or 1/2 small onion diced
2 ribs of celery, diced
pinch of dried thyme, or two or three tablespoons fresh
2-3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 cups vegetable stock [I use bullion cubes; you could also make your own. For a non-vegetarian version, you could use chicken stock.]
salt and pepper to taste
Heat oil and butter in large sauté pan, and add the shallots or onions, season with salt, pepper, and thyme, and sauté vegetables until translucent. Add kale, and sauté until the kale is cooked through. Add enough stock to cover the kale, cover pan, and turn heat to low. I use a covered ceramic Korean-style Dutch oven (which you can find at Chong’s in Coralville; it’s one of my favorite things to use for slow-cooking on the stovetop), but anything with a cover will work. Cook very slowly and stir occasionally. If it looks like it’s drying up, add some more stock. After about 15 minutes or so, the kale should become fairly tender; it should almost melt in your mouth. If it’s still toothsome, keep cooking it, as low and slow as you can, and keep trying it from time to time. You’ll know when it’s done: it’s one of those dishes that surprises you in its transformation at the very end.
FoodIowa 