I’m trying to add more vegetables to my diet and less fat. As I get older, all the indulgences (and over indulgences) are catching up. So I’m trying to get back on track. This recipe uses that wonder food, kale, and some low-fat, high flavor, chicken Italian sausage. And it came out really good!

How to Do it:

Start by cooking the kale. Place the raw, cleaned kale in a large kettle. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer until it’s tender. Drain and cool. You’ll need about 2 bunches of kale.

And now the casserole…

Heat the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat. Add the onions and cook until they are starting to soften. Add the garlic and the sausage, letting the sausage pieces brown on each side.

Next, add 1 Tablespoon of the butter to the pan and let it melt. Continue cooking until the butter begins to brown very slightly. Remove from the heat.

To prepare the kale, place the cooked kale, egg, 1/2 cup of the ricotta, the salt, pepper, Italian herbs and pepper flakes in a large bowl. Stir in 1/3 cup of bread crumbs and 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese. Mix until well blended.

Place the kale mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish. Top it with the sausage mixture.

Place the remaining ricotta on the top of the sausages.

Next, sprinkle the remaining bread crumbs and parmesan topped with the pine nuts.

Bake at 350° for about 30 minutes, or until the top gets golden brown.

Serve hot!

A variation – add some polenta to the bottom of the casserole before baking!

© Copyright 2018 The Lazy Gastronome

5 from 2 votes

Print ^[1]

Kale and Sausage Casserole

This recipe uses that wonder food, kale, and some low fat, high flavor, chicken Italian sausage. And it came out really good!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: casserole, kale, one pot, sausage

Servings: 4 people

Author: HelenFern

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup onions, chopped
• 4 links chicken Italian sausage (I like Open Nature)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 Tablespoons butter
• 3 cups cooked kale
• 1 whole egg
• 3/4 cup part skim ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs or panko bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian herb blend
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 2 Tablespoons pine nuts

Instructions

1. Start by cooking the kale. Place the raw, cleaned kale in a large kettle. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer until it's tender. Drain and cool. You'll need about 2 bunches of kale.

2. Next, heat the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat. Add the onions and cook until they are starting to soften. Add the garlic and the sausage, letting the sausage pieces brown on each side.

3. Add 1 Tablespoon of the butter to the pan and let it melt. Continue cooking until the butter begins to brown very slightly. Remove from the heat.

4. To prepare the kale, place the cooked kale, egg, 1/2 cup of the ricotta, the salt, pepper, Italian herbs and pepper flakes in a large bowl. Stir in 1/3 cup of bread crumbs and 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese. Mix until well blended.

5. Place the kale mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish. Top it with the sausage mixture.

   
   

6. Place the remaining ricotta on the top of the sausages.
7. Next, sprinkle the remaining bread crumbs and parmesan topped with the pine nuts.
8. Bake at 350° for about 30 minutes, or until the top gets golden brown.

Below are some of the items we used to create this recipe!

Disclosure: The items below are affiliate links through Amazon.com. If you purchase any of these products through the links, I receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Those wonderful leafy greens, so full of vitamins, minerals and fiber – a health boon to our bodies!!  So what to do with them?  Here’s a few ideas to get you started!

Spinach –

Chicken and Spinach Enchiladas ^[5]

Spaghetti with Spinach, Chicken & Parmesan ^[6]

Or, how about an Asian treat?

Thai Pork Chops with Baby Bok Choy ^[7]

We like mixing them too – like mustard and collards.

BBQ Ribs and C ^[8]ollards

Greens, Beans & Ham Soup ^[9]

Or Kale with Chard –

Crockpot Beef Shanks & Leafy Greens Soup ^[10]

And speaking of Kale –

Tortellini Soup (with Sausage & Kale) ^[11]

Kale and Mushroom Omelet ^[12]

So there are a few ways to put those amazing vegetables into your meals – hope these inspire you to add them more to your diet!

© Copyright 2017 The Lazy Gastronome

This hardy soup is perfect for a week night- just put it in the crock pot, go to work and it’s done when you get home!  Add some hot garlic bread and it is simply delicious!

What you need:

• 10 – 12 grape tomatoes, whole
• 2-3 pounds of beef shanks
• 1 bunch of red chard
• 1 bunch of kale
• 1 medium onion coarsely chopped
• ½ teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 16 oz. beef broth
• 1 cups water

How to Do it:

Mix the garlic salt, smoked paprika and lemon pepper in a small bowl.  Spread evenly over both sides of the beef shanks.

Cut the chard and the kale into ribbons, removing the thick, tough stems.

In the bottom of the crock pot, spread out the tomatoes.

Lay the shanks on top of the tomatoes.

Place all the greens into the crockpot and top with the onions.

Pour the broth and then the water into the crockpot and cover.

Cook on high for 30 minutes.  Reduce heat and cook on low for about 9 hours.

You can stir in cooked pasta at this time if you want (I didn’t).

Serve hot with toasted garlic bread – Delicious!

Makes about 4 servings

© Copyright 2017 The Lazy Gastronome

Kale – the most nutrient dense food there is.  It’s full of vitamins like A,K and C – minerals like calcium and potassium (to name a couple).  It’s chock full of antioxidants and can actually help lower cholesterol.  And this is just a few of the benefits this food has!  So are you ready for a really good way to serve it? ^[18]

Here’s what you need for one omelet, but it’s easy to increase if you’re feeding the family!

NOTE: There are rumors that eating too much kale can be toxic.  The claim is that it contains heavy metals from the soil.  The truth is, this has never been proven.  So eat up and enjoy!

What you need:

• 6-8 brown mushrooms
• 1 cups chopped kale
• 2 green onions, chopped – whites separated from the green
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup grated Swiss cheese
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

How to Do it:

Add the mushrooms and kale to a skillet with about ½ water.  Bring the water to a boil, cover the pan, and cook until both are tender.  Drain the liquid and remove the vegetables from the pan.

Heat 1 Tablespoon of the oil in the pan.  Add the kale, mushrooms and the whites of the onions. Sauté for 1-2 minutes.  Remove from pan.

Heat the remaining oil in the skillet.  Whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt and pepper.  Pour into the pan and turn until it covers the entire bottom.  Cook on medium low until the eggs start to set.

Sprinkle the cheese and the green of the onions over the top of the eggs.

Add the other vegetables and gently fold.

Serve hot!

^[18]

Wild mushrooms go will with this recipe – And if you can get a hold of some, there are some great health benefits in Lion’s mane.  In fact, here are some easy mushroom recipes with lion’s mane ^[19]!

© Copyright 2017 The Lazy Gastronome