Kale Cake

Adapted from Spinach cake recipe from the book A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes by David Tanis

Kale – probably the best thing you can consume in winter to boost your vitamin levels. A real super food in humble cabbage family. To be honest, I’m struggling a bit with this healthy veg: I would love to get all the vitamins and other goodies from kale leaves, yet I am not thrilled with its taste and tough texture. Some brave and very healthy looking people put raw kale in their smoothies... Well, I am not that brave yet, so I decided to put it into a savory cake. The effect was surprisingly tasty. Even my meat-loving boyfriend approved it (bacon did the trick I guess!)

Ingredients:

2 medium leeks

2 tablespoons butter

400 g fresh kale leaves

¼- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
½ nutmeg
400 ml whole milk
4-5 eggs

50-100 g bacon (or chorizo, or pancetta, or prosciutto)
50-100 g cheddar or parmesan cheese

salt and freshly-ground pepper

Method:

1. Wash the leeks well; remove most of the green parts, cut into small pieces.

2. Melt the butter in a deep pan and sauté the leeks with a little salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until they’re translucent. While leeks are cooking, wash the kale leaves; tear off the stems, than chop roughly into smaller pieces.

3. Once the leeks are cooked, begin adding the kale in batches, putting on the lid until the kale has wilted, and then you can add more. Add salt and pepper as you go, and include a scraping of nutmeg and cayenne during the final batch.

4. When all the kale is just barely wilted put it into a large bowl (along with any juices) and let slightly cool. Taste and adjust seasoning – it should be highly seasoned, more than you would normally do!

5. Chop bacon or chorizo into small cubes; fry it and leave to dry on the paper towel 

6. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Liberally butter a baking dish. For amount in this recipe I use 20x30 cm, shallow rectangular ceramic.

7. With handheld blender puree the kale mixture with the milk and eggs until as smooth as possible. Add the bacon or chorizo. Season with more salt and plenty of pepper.

8. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Grate cheedar or parmesan over the top and bake for 35 minutes, or until a knife poked into the center comes out clean.

Serving: Let cool for at least 15 minutes or until room temperature. Green kale cake can be served as a side dish, however I prefer to eat it as a main dish with fried king trumpet mushrooms on the side as accompaniment.