We had a smoked salmon and kale and onion omelet for breakfast and a guacamole salad for lunch, so were not really hungry for dinner.
We worked in the garden a bit and among the tasks we did was to remove the tops that were starting to go to seed from the kale and parsley.
We decided to use some of the topped kale and parsley in lasagna for dinner. So after lunch I thawed out three chicken and feta cheese sausages (Sunflower Market, sale priced at $1.99/lb) and cut the leaves off the stalks of the kale and then went back to work on my computer, while Suzette made a broth with chicken stock, carrots, onion and mushrooms.
After Suzette started making the lasagna pasta and rolling it into sheets in the pasta machine. She then went to Pro’s Ranch Market and bought some ricotta style cheese, a mozzarella style cheese, a red bell pepper and mushrooms. When she arrived home she constructed the lasagna by brushing the lasagna dough with some of the fresh Spanish olive oil we bought in Spain last year and then made a three pasta layer lasagna with sliced mushrooms, kale, sautéed sausage, red bell pepper and mushrooms and ricotta and kale layered between the sheets of pasta with mozzarella sprinkled on top. Suzette then filled the ceramic casserole with the broth and put the lasagna into the oven to bake.
The result was fabulous. The lasagna exuded a light, deliciously balanced flavor without any flavor overpowering any other flavor, so that one tasted a cake like effect of pasta and ingredients expressing one flavor – Lasagna with the topping of mozzarella melted to a golden color giving an icing like experience. I do not think I have ever had a better lasagna.
Suzette went to the basement and selected a Château Bailloux-Rival, Bordeaux Superior 2008 (Costco 1-16-11 $7.99) which was awarded a Medaille d’Or in Paris
We loved the wine. It had a hint of chalkiness and was a deep purple claret color with a rich grape flavor, not unlike a good Spanish Vino Tinto. Suzette’s comment was, “Do we have any more bottles of this wine.” A very high compliment to the wine by Suzette.
We loved the simple dinner and drank the entire bottle of wine and were in heaven all the way. We discussed how one could convert the recipe into a vegetarian dish by making a vegetable broth and using more kale and ricotta or fresh local mozzarella in the filling and how this would be a good dish to serve at the June 23rd Field to Food dinner that will be held at the Center for Ageless Living this year. This year’s theme for the Field to Food Dinner is E’scape the Ordinary” and will feature garlic and garlic scapes in a five course gourmet dinner featuring locally grown ingredients and wines. The menu and tickets are available at www.growageless.com.
I had a slice of PPI pecan praline cake with some cognac and a cup of Earl Grey tea later in the evening.
Bon Appétit
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