Pierogi Casserole

Totally not pierogi, but close enough to fake it. Super easy although not easy on the number of dishes, but definitely worth it for some carb-y, fatty comfort food. There's no shame in it, and it's so, so good.

4-6 servings

5 potatoes, (2lb8oz/1150g) 
½ cup milk
⅓ cup butter (2.7oz/76gr), melted (#1)
½ tsp salt 
½ tsp pepper 

2 Tbsps. (1oz/28gr) butter (#2)
(Optional: ¼ lb bacon, diced)
2 onions (12oz), chopped
9 lasagna noodles 
2 Tbsps. (1oz/28gr) butter (#3)
2 Tbsps. flour
1¼ cups milk
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
Sour cream
3 Tbsps. chopped fresh chives

1. Boil the potatoes in lightly salted water for 10-20 minutes, until fork-tender. Drain and mash with milk and ⅓ cup of butter, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Melt 2 Tbsps.' of butter to sauté the onion (if using bacon, cut the butter by half and sauté together with the onion), until soft and translucent and starting to caramelize.
3. Meanwhile, boil the water and cook the noodles until just al dente. They cook some more as the dish bakes.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F.
5. Make the bechamel sauce: melt the butter in a saucepan; add the flour and whisk, until the flour starts to turn golden. Stream in the milk, whisking to avoid lumps.
6. Layer the ingredients in a 9x13 baking dish in the following sequence: 
• a single layer of 3 noodles
• ½ of the mashed potatoes
• ⅓ of the cheese
• a single layer of 3 lasagna noodles
• the whole preparation of bechamel
• ½ of the mashed potatoes
• ⅓ of the cheese
• a single layer of 3 lasagna noodles
• ⅓ of the cheese
• onions (and bacon) on top. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Bake, uncovered, in the hot oven for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve with sour cream and chopped fresh chives. 

Gratin Italian sausage and kale

I love teasing people about kale. It's the new kid on the block and folks are still discovering it and getting that shiny new convert look when you tell them it's survival food (ie. people eat it when there's nothing left to eat). The truth is that 1) I like kale just fine and 2) it is not new food. It's been around for a long, long time because it's so hardy and reliable. Cook it right, and it's a sweet treat. But it does have a very strong flavor and not everyone is a fan, so if you want to serve kale to a finnicky table, match it with equally strong flavors. This dish is a cheesy saucy gooey warming dish with a lovely crunchy topping.

Some olive oil

1 lb fresh mild or hot Italian sausage, casings removed and crumbled

⅓ cup dry white wine

2 bunches (about 1 pound) kale, stemmed and torn into large pieces

½ cup (4oz/114gr) + 3 Tbsps (1.5oz/42gr) butter, melted

⅓ cup flour

2 cups milk

8oz fresh goat cheese or feta

3oz freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup fresh bread crumbs

1 Tbsp minced fresh herbs (such as a combination of parsley, oregano and basil)

1. Heat the oven to 350°F degrees.
2. In a large stainless steel sauté pan, heat the oil and cook the sausage, breaking it up. Cook until browned (usually when the moisture has evaporated). Remove any excess fat.
3. Add the wine scraping up the fond. Continue to cook until the wine reduces and is mostly evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. 
4. Decrease the heat and stir in the kale, one handful at a time. Mix in the kale and cook until it begins to wilt and turn a bright green. Don't worry about overcooking the kale; it is impossible, unless you burn it! Remove from heat and set the pan aside.
5. Meanwhile, dump the bread crumbs in a medium sized bowl.
6. Melt all the butter in a saucepan. When melted, put 3 Tbsps of it into the breadcrumb bowl.
7. Into the remaining butter, whisk in the flour; continue wisking until starting to brown. Add the milk, whisking constantly, until it thickens into a sauce.
8. Add the crumbled goat cheese to the roux and continue to whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.
9. Pour the sauce into the sausage and kale and let sit 5 minutes to allow any more fond to lift. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to scrape up the fond and mix the sauce evenly in the sausage and kale.
10. Spoon the mixture into a shallow, 2 quart gratin dish.
11. To the breadcrumb and butter, add parmesan and minced fresh herbs. Mix thoroughly, then evenly distribute over the kale and sausage to form the topping.
12. Bake the gratin until the topping is golden-brown and the filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes (briefly broil at this point if not browned enough).
13. Cool slightly before serving with crusty bread if eating as a main dish.

Frugal Pie

This is a delicious way of using up leftover meat and potatoes. I often will use any drippings or gravy instead of the broth, and I'll also make use of any leftover vegetables, popping them in at the last minute instead of cooking them again. Frugal can also mean delicious.

2 Tbsps (1oz/28gr) butter or bacon fat
1 onion, diced (TO DO: Measure the total quantity of veg and meat)
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
Optional 4oz mushroom, diced
1 Tbsp flour
1 cup broth (can be liquor from the roast)
¼ cup milk
1 sprig thyme, rosemary or sage
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
8 oz cold cooked red meat
1 lb potatoes (cold or already mashed, or see Step 7)

1. Sauté onion, celery, and carrots in butter until cooked through and starting to brown, about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, mince the meat by hand into small but recognizable chunks.
3. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
4. Add flour to the sautée mixture, stirring well. Cook one minute, at least, or until well browned. This is important - cooking the flour in the buttered vegetables means the flour is absorbing all the liquids and fats in the pan, then cooking so that when you make the sauce, it will have carried all the lovely browning flavour with it, and it won't taste floury. 
5. Dump the broth and then the milk into the vegetable mixture and stir thoroughly. Add the thyme, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until the broth thickens and gets bubbly. 
6. Mix in the meat and put in a pie plate or casserole dish.
7. If they're not already mashed, prepare the potatoes with 3 Tbsps of milk or cream, and butter, to taste, along with a pinch of salt.
8. Layer the mashed potatoes on top of the meat mixture and put in the hot oven for 35 minutes or until the top browns.

Pesto Mac and Cheese

Some may feel that toying with a classic is aberrant, but I think this tastes pretty darned good! You can also omit the pesto just for a regular old tasty mac&cheese.

8oz (225g) dry chunky pasta like macaroni, fusilli, etc
2 (1oz/28gr) + 2 (1oz/28gr) Tbsps butter
¾ cups (75g) panko breadcrumbs
1 small onion (4oz/115g)
1 Tbsp flour
¼ tsp dry mustard
⅛ tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1½ cups milk
1 cup (about 2.5 oz) grated sharp cheddar
1 cup (about 2.5 oz) grated gruyère cheese
Optional 1.5 oz chèvre cheese
2 Tbsps to ¼ cup pesto

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Boil the pasta in some salted water until just al dente; tender but firm (it will cook more when baking, and mushy pasta isn't great).
3. Meanwhile, in a hot pan, melt 2 Tbsps of the butter and mix in the breadcrumbs, stirring until evenly combined, and set aside.
4. Melt the remaining 2 Tbsps of butter and cook the onion until perfectly tender, about 5 minutes.
5. Blend in the flour, mustard, pepper and salt.
6. Stir in the milk and whisk until it thickens into a sauce. 
7. Remove for the heat source and stir in the cheese until well combined.
8. Add the pesto and combine, followed by the pasta. Mix until the pasta is uniformly covered.
9. Pour the pasta into the baking dish and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the surface.
10. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the top is toasted and golden.

Baked Stew with Sausage, Potatoes and Cabbage

This has been most successful using small Charmant cabbages slightly under 1 lb. It's relatively simple and quick to put together, then you just have to sit back with a cocktail until it's done.

¼ cup (55g) olive oil + more for drizzling
1½ Tbsps balsamic vinegar
2 tsps caraway or fennel seeds
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
1 to 1¼ lb fingerling baby potatoes, or larger potatoes cut into chunks
1 onion (6oz/170g) cut into quarters (don't cut out the basal plate)
8 oz to 1lb cabbage, cut into wedges (don't cut out the heart to keep the leaves together)
¼ cup chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1½ pounds sweet Italian sausage, cut into chunks
4 garlic cloves, pressed

1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 425°F. 
2. In a large bowl whisk together ¼ cup olive oil, vinegar, seeds, salt and pepper until emulsified.
3. Throw in the potatoes and onions and toss until covered in oil. 
4. Layer the cabbage at the bottom of a deep glass baking dish (Corning ware 4L casserole works well) and drizzle with some extra olive oil. Glass here is important because it's better at absorbing radiant heat than metal is. Also, packing the pot to almost full prevents any stagnant air to sit on top of the dish, preventing it from more direct access to this radiant heat, effectively creating uneven heat and slower cooking in the middle.
5. Pour in the chicken broth.
6. Layer the coated potatoes and onions on top. Nestle the bay leaves in among the veg.
7. To get the rest of the sauce out of the bowl, throw in the sausage chunks and toss. Put the sausage on top of the veg mix and pour over any extra marinade. 
8. Sprinkle the pressed garlic on the very top.
9. Cook, covered, for about 45 minutes. 
10. Uncover and cook until light golden brown and fully cooked, about 20 minutes.