Kale is king these days. I’ve been reading all about things such as crispy fried kale and kale chips and braised kale and of course, kale soup.

All delicious. And it’s healthy too. Calcium. Vitamins A, C and K (sounds like New York subway lines). Also one of those cabbage descendants that may have anti-cancer effects.

I never heard of kale, growing up. The only cabbage we ate was in Aunt Goldie’s special soup and also the sauerkraut we put on top of our hot dogs.

But now, as I said, kale is king. Like other cabbage cousins, it can be acrid so you have to treat it right. If you overcook it, it can smell up the entire kitchen. But if you undercook it it doesn’t taste right.

I buy kale a lot because I like to experiment with recipes, especially with ingredients that weren’t familiar from my childhood.

But Ed has always hated my kale concoctions.

Until this one: Kale Gratin. It looked so appealing to him he actually asked for a piece (I was saving it to be rewarmed for another meal). And then he asked for seconds!

A miracle.

We finished the rest the next day (10 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven).

Enjoy this, kale lovers!

Enjoy this, everyone celebrating Shavuot. It’s the cheese dish I will be serving instead of my usual Spinach Pie this year.

Kale Gratin

1 large bunch kale

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cup half and half cream

1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2-3 tablespoons plain, fresh or dry bread crumbs

1 tablespoon butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut off and discard the hard stems from the kale. Discard discolored leaves. Wash the leaves carefully and cut them into 3-4 pieces. Place the leaves in a large saucepan, add about 1 cup water and cover the pan. Cook on medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes or until the leaves are soft and wilted. Press the water out of the leaves. Chop the leaves into small pieces and place in a lightly greased baking dish. In a bowl, beat the eggs and mustard until combined. Stir in the cream and blend ingredients thoroughly. Stir in the Swiss cheese and some salt and pepper to taste. Pour the mixture over the kale and stir to distribute the kale evenly in the dish. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top. Cut the butter into small pieces and use them to dot the surface of the gratin. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is crispy and golden brown. Makes 4-6 servings

Sukkot, which begins at sundown tomorrow (October 12th) is very much like Thanksgiving. Both holidays celebrate the harvest and there’s a feast of good food to eat. 

The difference is that on Sukkot, according to Rabbinic tradition, you’re supposed to eat all your meals in a sukkah (a “hut” or “booth”), outside. Which is probably the way the colonial Pilgrims ate their Thanksgiving dinner, now that I think of it.

A lot of Jewish families build sukkahs. Of course you have to have a backyard or some sort of property. Or a fire escape. Or some place where you can build a makeshift hut, even if it is just a “representation” of a real sukkah. If you belong to a synagogue you can go to a communal sukkah of course. 

In any event, I don’t know anyone who actually eats all their meals outside in a hut. I know maybe one or two who build a sort of sukkah and they have dessert out there on the first night of the holiday. My family never built one when I was a kid. The closest I ever got to eating in a sukkah was when my cousin Leslie and I hung a bedspread over a card table, crawled inside and ate potato chips.

To tell the truth, my husband and I didn’t build one for our kids either. They visited the one at their Sunday school.

But Sukkot food is really good no matter where you eat it. Because it follows the season and the harvest, like all good food. Sukkot food features end-of-summer and beginning-of-autumn fruits and vegetables: apples, pears, squash, pumpkin, eggplant and stuff like that.

Sukkot foods are also usually easily transportable too — for those people who will be carrying the food out to the hut.

Here’s a seasonal dessert that’s yummy, easy and you can take anywhere:

Pear and Ginger Crisp

6 ripe pears

juice of half lemon

1-1/2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh ginger

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

Crust:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons butter

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Peel, core and slice the pears into a bowl. Add the lemon juice, ginger, cinnamon, 1/3 cup brown sugar, flour and salt. Toss the ingredients and place in a baking dish. Make the crust: Combine the 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar and salt in a bowl. Add the butter in chunks and work into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Scatter over the pears. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Let cool slightly before serving (or serve at room temperature). Makes 6-8 servings

Whether you are Jewish and observant, preparing to fast (from Monday at sunset through Tuesday at sunset) for Tisha B’av, or whether you like to follow Meatless Mondays in order to cut down on meat consumption, or whether you would simply like a light, easy-to-make dinner that everyone will love, think pizza.

Is there anyone who doesn’t like pizza?

When I was a kid the only pizza we could get was Pizza Margherite, with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese.

Still my favorite.

We’ve come far far from the classic. You can buy — or make — pizza with any topping you like these days. 

But for a meatless meal that is substantial and filling, yet light enough for a summer dinner, try this recipe for White Pizza with Spinach. It’s from my book, Hip Kosher. Substitute any vegetable you like.

White Pizza with Spinach

1 pound pizza dough

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large clove garlic, finely chopped

1 bunch fresh spinach, washed and dried

1 15-ounce package ricotta cheese

8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (about 2 cups)

1-1/2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. (Preheat a pizza stone if you have one.) Lightly oil a large cookie sheet. Stretch the pizza dough into a 12-15 inch circle and place it on the cookie sheet or pizza stone. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook briefly. Add the spinach and cook for 3-5 minutes or until wilted and all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan. If necessary press the spinach in a sieve to extract the liquid. Chop the spinach coarsely. Spread the ricotta cheese evenly over the pizza dough. Top with the spinach. Spread the mozzarella cheese on top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and oregano. Drizzle with the remaining tablespoon olive oil. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the crust is crispy and the cheese has melted and is golden brown. Makes 8 pieces (4 servings)

In case you didn’t know, today is Tu B’Shevat.

Huh?

It’s one of the lesser-known Jewish holidays. I mean, talking about this to the world at large makes me feel like Barbra Streisand in The Way We Were when she cooked a brisket and wished her non-Jewish-Robert Redford husband a “Happy Rosh Hashanah.”

But this is really a good holiday because it focuses on conservation, the earth, preservation. Some call this The New Year of Trees, because it traditionally begins a season of tree planting in Israel. But at the bottom of it all is the notion that we must take good care of the earth, not waste it or trample on it or abuse it to death.

Not a bad notion, that.

Also, Tu B’Shevat food is pretty good. You know there’s a food for every Jewish holiday. That’s just the way we are. There is no particular dish that’s traditional, like a Thanksgiving turkey. This holiday is mostly about fruit, fresh or dried. Anything goes, from chips with fruit salsa to lamb shanks with dried apricots to date-orange muffins.

Date-Orange muffins are wonderful for breakfast or snack but you can also use them as a bread for dinner.

Date-Orange Muffins

4 tablespoons butter

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoons grated fresh orange rind

3/4 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt

1/4 cup orange juice

1 large egg

2/3 cup chopped dates

1/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease 9-10 muffin tins. Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Stir in the orange rind. In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk, orange juice, egg and melted butter. Add the liquids to the dry ingredients and stir to blend but do not mix vigorously. Fold in the dates and pecans. Spoon the dough into the muffin tins, filling them 2/3 full. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Makes 9-10