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by Julie Ruble at Foodie.com
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Portobello and Kale Pizza Bake
I know people have different taste or whatever, but I have trouble believing that anyone actually enjoys eating a kale chip.
I say this as someone who was very excited about the prospect of transforming a flavorless vegetable via heat and salt into a fitting potato chip substitute. I had fantasies of baking up dozens of pounds of kale and snacking continuously without actually amassing any significant numbers of calories. I dreamed of navigating the rest of my days with a pouch of salted kale chips, a coke zero, and not a care in the world.
And then I tasted a kale chip. WHAT DEVILRY IS THIS? It was like eating a salted piece of fireplace ash. Both the chip and my dreams disintegrated on my tongue in withering, bitter, anticlimactic defeat.
So anyway, what I’m trying to say is I’m not the most likely candidate to post a kale recipe.
That just proves this recipe is fantastic, though. I was skeptical, particularly since I was removing the only redeeming feature in the original recipe (chicken) and replacing it with portobello mushrooms. I do love a good mushroom, but I worried the dish as a whole would fall flat without the meat and fat. Contrary to my expectations, the recipe was satisfying, warm, filling, and incredibly easy. I ate two helpings with hunks of a crusty baguette.
So often comfort food is too calorie- and carbohydrate-laden to make my “weeknight meals” list, so this was a nice surprise. And it redeems kale, which I’d all but sworn off forever (frankly, it’s still on probation after those kale chip shenanigans.)
What are your favorite comfort food meals lately? Find other comfort food recipes that look amazing to me in the slideshow above.
One year ago: Baked Caramel Apple Cheesecake Dumplings
Two years ago: “Magic” Chocolate, Coconut, and Pecan Pastry Braid
Three years ago: Naked Vegan Tacos with Corn Relish and Cilantro-Lime Slaw
Four years ago: Handmade Cheese Ravioli in Meaty Red Sauce
Five years ago: Cardamom Pumpkin Macarons
Portobello and Kale Pizza Bake
Recipe by: Willow Bird Baking, adapted from Savvy Mom
Yield: 4 servings
I was skeptical about this recipe. It seemed too simple to come out tasting much like anything other than a pile of kale, and I’m not a kale fan. I was pleasantly surprised, though! Not only is this pizza bake low-carb and vegetarian, it’s also comforting and delicious.
Ingredients:
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 portobello mushrooms, cleaned with stems and gills removed
1 bunch of kale, cut into thin ribbons after center stalks are removed
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 cups pizza sauce (I used Ragú pizza sauce)
1/2 cup white wine
8 ounces mozzarella cheese
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Make sure to have all ingredients prepped (cleaned, chopped, measured) before you begin.
Rub the mushrooms with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Heat a 10-inch, oven-safe skillet over medium heat with another couple of teaspoons of olive oil in it. Sear the mushrooms for about 2 minutes on each side before removing them to a plate (next time I’ll weight them down with a panini press, but I didn’t this time). Add another couple of teaspoons of olive oil to the skillet. Add the garlic and cook, moving it around constantly, for about 30 seconds before adding the white wine to stop the garlic from burning. Add the kale. Sauté the kale, moving it about and tossing it, for about 5 minutes or until it is wilted. Season it with more salt and pepper. Nestle the mushrooms and their juices back into the kale.
Sprinkle the oregano over top. Pour the pizza sauce over the mushrooms and kale. Top with mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melty and bubbling. Serve with crusty bread.
Sarah
October 24, 2014 at 2:52 pm (9 years ago)I could not agree more about the kake chips. As soon as I opened the oven to take them out, I was disgusted. I still had hope though until I tasted one….. wah wah. This recipe looks fantastic though!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar
October 24, 2014 at 3:10 pm (9 years ago)I’m the strange person who loves kale chips! But I like them made in a certain way, if that makes you feel better! Recipes like this are my comfort food!
Kelly
October 25, 2014 at 4:54 pm (9 years ago)Sounds like a tasty and healthy comfort food- just what I need during the week!
Kellie @ The Suburban Soapbox
November 8, 2014 at 8:19 am (9 years ago)I loathe kale chips. I, too, wanted to like them and expected a satisfying replacement for my potato chip addiction. Epic fail. But this dish looks so hearty and satisfying I don’t think I would miss the chicken either. I would, however, slather a pound of butter on my baguette…..just because. BTW…it was such a pleasure meeting you this week!