Dig & Dish: COMFORT FOOD AND KALE

I admit the words comfort food and kale do not often go together, but late last month I found myself thinking of the two in remembrance of my Mother.

Last month marked 20 years since I lost my beloved Mother to colon cancer. I do not usually focus on remembering dates of loss, preferring to think of the happy events I shared with her and my family.

The two most important lessons I learned from my mother were to practice kindness whenever possible and to show love through food preparation and cooking.

When I was a teenager, I developed an intense interest in what was then known as “health food” driving her crazy with requests for unusual ingredients and a taste for “earthy” flavors rather than the rich desserts she loved to bake…though I indulged in those too. I never lost my passion for this type of eating and cooking; though I have practiced it sometimes more than others through the years.

That’s where the kale comes in. My adaptation to the cooking I learned from my mother and grandmothers has been to incorporate healthy ingredients into the wonderful comfort foods I grew up with, either as an ingredient or a side dish to balance out the richness with some earthiness and add a few extra vitamins.

Our grown-up relationship turned into a wonderful friendship and I found a deep respect for her words of wisdom, which I sought often and miss today. We both adored cooking and baking, sharing recipes, and reading cookbooks like novels. At that time we were hooked on Bon Appetite Magazine and would call each other when we received our latest issue to discuss which recipes we were going to make. One year I was making a holiday dinner featuring prime rib and my mom asked me what I would like her to bring for dessert. I pointed to the chocolate ganache cake on the cover that month; to mine and my family’s delight she created the cake as beautiful as it looked in the magazine and delicious too. We used to joke that I would have a restaurant some day and she would be the pastry chef. Sadly we never made that dream come true.

Today I cook many of the dishes she made in my childhood with a slight change to suit my lighter and healthier way of eating, but once in awhile nothing will do but the original recipe, like Mom’s Mac n Cheese….just one bite brings back comforting memories. My mother also made cinnamon rolls from scratch that were the best I have ever had….I have not yet had the courage to tackle that recipe, but one day I will.

Although I miss her presence, my mother will always be with me through my love of cooking and carrying on the tradition of cooking with love for the people I love.

Mom

I developed the End of Fall Salad, which includes kale, to get my beneficial greens and enjoy every bite of practicing good health – it is also a good pairing with the Mac n cheese for a vegetarian meal. I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I do.

Mom’s Mac n Cheese

Ingredients: 8 ounces large elbow macaroni

1 and ¼ cup cheddar cheese (diced in small pieces)

2 Tablespoons butter

Salt & Pepper to taste

2 cups Milk (I use 2%)

12 x 7.5 “ rectangular dish – greased with additional butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook macaroni – bring large pot of water to boil, put in macaroni, bring to boil and cook for 10 minutes. Drain and rinse.

Layer in prepared dish – macaroni, ½ of cheddar cheese, and half of the butter cut in small pieces (dot the layers with the butter).

Add second layer of macaroni and cheese and butter to use it up. Lightly mix together to evenly distribute cheese and butter throughout the dish.

Pour milk over all (should be just below top).

Bake 45 – 60 minutes until milk is bubbly and thick and top is crunchy.

Let stand about 10 minutes before cutting in pieces so that it sets. Enjoy!

End of Fall Salad

Ingredients:

3-4 large Kale leaves (any variety – tear bite-size pieces of leaves from stem and discard stem)

3-4 large Spinach leaves torn into bite-size pieces (or use 8 -9 baby spinach leaves)

3-4 large Romaine leaves torn in bite-size pieces

1 medium sweet potato cooked (baked or steamed but still firm)

½ cup dried cranberries

¼ cup slivered almonds (sweetened or unsweetened)

Sea salt and pepper to taste

1 Tablespoon White balsamic vinegar o apple cider vinegar *note you can also use a flavored white vinegar – I love to use peach white balsamic vinegar in this salad

¼ Cup Olive oil (good quality)

Put greens in bowl of water and swish around to clean thoroughly and get rid of any grit. Dry in salad spinner or roll in tea towel to dry (or use paper towels) – place greens in large bowl.

Remove skin from cooled sweet potato and cut in cubes (about ½ inch or so) and add to greens in bowl.

Sprinkle with cranberries and almonds.

Sprinkle white vinegar over salad and then season with salt and pepper

Add olive oil on top of vinegar and seasoning and toss to coat the salad.

Note: This keeps well for a day if there are leftovers. Enjoy!