Idaho® potato mini lasagnas with kale and pesto

• 

Have you ever tried making lasagna using paper-thin slices of potato instead of pasta? It's a genius remake of traditional Italian lasagna. The potatoes have the same chewy starchiness you get with pasta noodles. Add meat for the carnivores or take it vegetarian as I've done here with kale and pesto sauce.

You can make this recipe as one big lasagna, but I prefer making mini lasagnas in a muffin tin instead. Portion control - it's a good thing.

Note: This recipe was originally published on the Idaho® Potato Commission website. Go look at their amazing collection of potato recipes - I guarantee you will be inspired.

print recipe

Idaho® potato mini lasagnas with kale and pesto

by Erika Kerekes December-15-2013

Individual mini lasagnas using thinly sliced potatoes instead of pasta. Kale and pesto make these single-serving lasagnas a delicious gluten-free vegetarian entree.

Ingredients

• 1 bunch curly or Tuscan kale
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 pound Idaho® Russet potatoes, scrubbed (do not peel)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup) ricotta cheese (whole or part-skim)
• 1/2 cup prepared basil pesto sauce
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan or Romano cheese

Instructions

Wash the kale well and strip the leaves from the stems (discard the stems). Chop the leaves finely. It’s okay if some water clings to the kale leaves.Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and kale and saute about 5 minutes, until the kale is wilted. Remove the skillet from the heat and set aside.Slice the potatoes paper-thin. (It’s easiest to do this with a mandoline, v-slicer or food processor.) Toss the potato slices with the salt and let sit about 5 minutes.In a small bowl, mix the ricotta cheese, pesto sauce and egg together.Preheat the oven to 350° F.Assemble the mini lasagnas: Spray each cup of the muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray, or brush it with olive oil. Build the lasagnas in layers in each muffin cup, starting with a layer of potato slices, then adding a small dollop of the ricotta-pesto mixture, a teaspoon of cooked kale, a sprinkle of shredded mozzarella cheese, and a sprinkle of grated parmesan or Romano cheese. Continue building the mini lasagnas in this manner, finishing each one with a layer of potato slices and a sprinkle of mozzarella and parmesan.Bake the mini lasagnas about 40 minutes, until the potatoes are tender, the cheese is golden brown and the lasagnas are cooked through. Remove from the oven and let sit 5 minutes before attempting to remove from the pan. Use a small offset spatula or blunt knife to unmold the mini lasagnas and transfer to serving plates. Serve immediately.

Details

Prep time: 20 mins Cook time: 40 mins Total time: 1 hour Yield: 12 mini lasagnas

Erika's colcannon - mashed potatoes with kale, cabbage and carrots

• 

A steaming bowl of mashed potatoes with cream and butter is divine.

A steaming bowl of mashed potatoes with cream, butter, cabbage, kale and carrots is sublime.

This is my riff on colcannon, the national dish of Ireland, in which shredded sauteed cabbage is added to buttery mashed potatoes. I wanted a little more vegetable to balance out my potatoes, so I added thinly sliced kale and shredded carrots. (That's my New Year's resolution - to put in more vegetables whenever possible.)

Plus the bowl looks better with the kale and carrots. Cooked cabbage and mashed potatoes are roughly the same color - beige. The dark ribbons of kale and bright shredded carrots make for a much prettier dish, don't you think?

I ate this colcannon happily as a meal for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but feel free to serve yours as a side with roast chicken or salmon.

print recipe

Erika's colcannon - mashed potatoes with cabbage, kale and carrots

by Erika Kerekes January-7-2013

This is my riff on colcannon, the traditional Irish mixture of mashed potatoes and cooked cabbage. Kale and carrots add flavor, color and extra nutrients.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, unpeeled
• 6 Tablespoons butter, plus more for serving
• 1/2 green cabbage, thinly shredded
• 1 bunch kale (Tuscan or curly), thinly shredded
• 2 large carrots, peeled and grated
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Place the potatoes, whole and unpeeled, in a large pot. Cover the potatoes with cold water by a few inches and set the pot over high heat. When the water boils, turn the flame down, cover the pot, and simmer the potatoes until they are tender (a paring knife should go cleanly through to the center of the potatoes). The time will depend on how big the potatoes are, but start checking them after 30 minutes. Drain the cooked potatoes and let them cool until you can handle them. While the potatoes are cooking, melt the butter in another large pot over medium-high heat. Add the cabbage, kale and carrots. Cook until the vegetables are tender but not mushy, 10-15 minutes. Heat the cream and milk in a measuring cup in the microwave until warm.Slip the skins off the potatoes and put the potato flesh back in the pot. (Discard the skins.) Add the cream mixture and mash the potatoes with a hand-held potato masher. When they are fairly smooth, add the cabbage mixture and continue mashing to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste (you will need a good amount of salt). Serve immediately with an additional pat of butter on top.

Details

Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 45 mins Total time: 1 hour Yield: 6-8 servings

Macaroni and cheese with kale

• 

I have a theory about kale: Add it to any recipe and your recipe automatically qualifies as health food.

Even macaroni and cheese.

I made an unexpected discovery the day I added shredded sauteed kale to a pan of gooey, creamy macaroni and cheese: I actually liked the mac and cheese more with kale in it.

It might be because I felt somewhat more virtuous about eating it. It did taste awfully good, though. I'm going through a "where have you been all my life?" phase with kale. It's seeing a lot of play in my kitchen lately.

What do you put in your macaroni and cheese? ('cause I know you can't just play it straight...)

print recipe

Macaroni and cheese with kale

by Erika Kerekes July-16-2012

Add kale to any dish and it automatically qualifies as health food - right? Besides, shredded kale actually makes macaroni and cheese tastier.

Ingredients

• 1 bunch Tuscan kale (also called dinosaur kale)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 pound whole wheat macaroni, penne or ziti
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 3 cups milk (whole, lowfat or fat-free)
• 4 cups white cheddar cheese, shredded (or substitute gruyere, fontina or any combination of cheese you prefer)
• freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs or panko breadcrumbs

Instructions

Strip the kale leaves from their stems and cut the kale leaves into very fine ribbons. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the kale. Saute the kale about 6-8 minutes or until significantly wilted. Set aside.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Fill a large pot with water, add the salt, and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook 2 minutes less than the package directions. You want the pasta very al dente because it will continue to cook in the oven. Drain the pasta and put it into a large mixing bowl. While you're cooking the pasta, drop the butter into a medium saucepan. When the butter is melted, add the flour and whisk together to make a roux. Cook the butter-flour mixture about 1 minute to get rid of the raw flour taste, then slowly start adding the milk, whisking constantly. Bring the milk mixture to a simmer, making sure there are no lumps (the more you whisk, the fewer lumps you'll have). Add the shredded cheese and whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth. Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and mix well. Add the kale and a generous amount of pepper and stir again. Spray a large baking pan with cooking spray (9x13 works, or any casserole dish that looks to be the right size). Turn the pasta mixture into the baking dish and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top.Bake the macaroni and cheese about 40 minutes, until the casserole is bubbly and the breadcrumbs are nicely browned. Serve immediately.

Details

Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 40 mins Total time: 1 hour 10 mins Yield: 8-10 servings