Healthy and bacon. Enough said, right? I made this a while ago for my husband and now every time I buy Kale with intentions of making Kale salads, really I just want to cook it down and top it with bacon. I can't get it out of my head.
This is a really simple and relatively healthy side dish that comes together super quick and tastes like a decadent side dish you would get at a steak house. Kale has been super trendy for a while because of all the health benefits (Iron, Fiber, Vitamins C and K), plus I actually really enjoy the Lacinato variety (Dinosaur Kale) so I usually have some in the fridge. A little cream cheese, some bacon bits, parmesan....and you're in business.
The dish is creamy, decadent, salty and has a nice texture from the added bacon bits on the top.
Creamed spinach is a go-to at any steakhouse. Although let's be honest, we have a 4 year old, a 3 year old and a 1 year old. Getting out to a steakhouse with the kids sounds extremely challenging, and also, any kind of date night is very hard these days. I also do love to cook up a good steak though, and re-creating any kind of delicious steakhouse side such as creamed spinach can be challenging. Plus it uses so much heavy cream it can be difficult if you're trying to keep it "healthier." This was one reason I tried to lighten this up, and two, why I used Kale. It has a lot more health benefits, is super filling because of all the fiber and provides iron, which I am trying to get a bit more of these days.
I start by adding a bit of oil and minced garlic into a sauté pan. Meanwhile, while that heats up, I start shredding my Kale. Ensure to remove the stems as those can be bitter, and after throwing into a colander, I use kitchen shears to chop everything into smaller sized bites. From there, I added it to my pan and added the water to create steam to begin wilting the Kale. Easy peasy!
From here, it only gets simpler. Once the Kale has wilted down, add your cream cheese, bacon bits and parmesan. Give it a good stir, turn up the heat and wait for things to start to bubble a bit. After the "creamed" portion begins to thicken, remove from heat, plate and add a bit more bacon bits and parmesan.
Walla! You have a delicious and rich side that compliments pretty much any dish. Enjoy!
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