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Endgame Casserole

VegetarianCasseroleDiner-Style

Time: 50 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

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About

This is your dinnertime showstopper. Conversations should halt immediately upon seeing this dish. This is Endgame Casserole. That might feel a touch dramatic, but it has a dramatic taste and deserves a little gravitas! Kale, cooked tender, makes a welcome garden-fresh partner to the creamy cheese sauce, the bouncy pasta shells, and the crunchy panko topping. Who says you need meat to be a main course? Endgame Casserole proves that vegetarian cooking can be just as dynamic as the title suggests!

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Ingredients

  • 4 quarts water
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 1 (16-ounce) package fresh kale, chopped
  • 4 cups whole milk
  • 6 tablespoons salted butter, cold and cut into pieces
  • 1 cup yellow onion, chopped
  • 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 (8-ounce) package pre-shredded Monterey Jack cheese
  • 1 teaspoon hot sauce, of your choice
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 8 ounces medium-size shell pasta, cooked
  • 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Step 1 -Preheat the broiler with the oven rack set about 8-9 inches from the heating element.

Step 2 -Grease a 7x11-inch baking dish.

Step 3 -In a Dutch oven, add the water and 1/4 cup of the salt.

Step 4 -Bring the salted water to a boil over high heat.

Step 5 -Add the kale and boil until tender, about 5-7 minutes.

Step 6 -Drain the kale and pat it dry with paper towels, allowing it to cool for 10 minutes.

Step 7 -Place the milk in a 1-quart measuring cup.

Step 8 -Cover the measuring cup with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 3 minutes.

Step 9 -In the Dutch oven over medium heat, melt the butter.

Step 10 -Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 6 minutes.

Step 11 -Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until the raw flour smell disappears, about 2 minutes.

Step 12 -Whisk in the hot milk.

Step 13 -Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a low boil, whisking often.

Step 14 -Cook, whisking often, until thickened, about 6 minutes.

Step 15 -Transfer the Dutch oven from the heat and whisk in the cheese, the hot sauce, the pepper, and the remaining salt.

Step 16 -Fold the kale and the cooked pasta into the cheese sauce.

Step 17 -Add the mixture to the prepared baking dish.

Step 18 -Stir together the panko and the olive oil.

Step 19 -Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta mixture.

Step 20 -Broil until the panko is golden brown, about 1-2 minutes.

Step 21 -Serve immediately.

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