Cold weather equals comfort food. I’m all about the comfort when it’s easy to make and tastes delicious. Though it’s great to put in a great deal of effort, I’d rather save the effort for the eating and serving up yummy dishes.  This meal is great as a side or even as a main event, trust me you will want seconds. I even was able to get my carnivorous boyfriend and brother on board. I was inspired by a recipe on TheKitchn.com but you know me, I love to make it vegan! Well, here you go my foodies!

What You Need: 

• 1 1/2 pounds of red potatoes
• 1 bag of Tuscan kale (Trader Joe’s has a great bag of Tuscan kale, super cheap, super tasty-great in smoothies too!)
• 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons of sea salt
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1 cup of coconut or soy milk creamer (unsweetened)
• 1/4 cup of cashew cheese
• 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
• 2 tbs of vegan butter (soy free)
• 2 tbs of gluten free flour (or wheat flour, your choice)
• Breadcrumbs (optional)

How You Make It: 

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Slice potatoes into disks , 1/4-inch thick (skin on) and toss into salted boiling water. Cook for 3 minutes or until tender. Drain potatoes and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking process.
3. In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Add flour, stirring constantly. After a minute or so, add in the coconut/soy milk creamer. Continue to stir until it thickens. Once thick, add in nutritional yeast and cashew cheese (think cheese sauce for mac ‘n cheese, yum). Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss  the potatoes and kale in the olive oil mixture. Add to a casserole baking dish, layering the kale and potatoes and adding the “cheese” sauce to each layer and sprinkling with bread crumbs, if you like.
5. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes or until the top is crispy. Feel free to add more breadcrumbs to the top layer for added crunch (suggestion: mix breadcrumbs with vegan butter to make the top extra golden).

Serving Suggestion: Serve with a mixed greens salad or with your favorite sautéed veggies. I love making roasted brussels sprouts with Grade B Maple Syrup, dried cranberries and slivered almonds. Perfection. Sweet and savory all in one dish, talk about a food-gasm (yes, that is a word).

I hope you get inspired to make something delicious for dinner tonight or any of these cold nights during the Polar Vortex.

Peace, love and NO beef!

Guramrit