Cheesy Kale, Mushroom, and Fennel Strata with Real California Gouda Cheese

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If you're looking for holiday dinner inspiration, look no further than this mushroom and kale strata. It's a nutritious and delicious casserole that can serve your friends and family during your holiday meal. Plus, it's affordable with its seasonal ingredients and is vegetarian to boot!

You might notice that this strata is dreamy, and that’s because it's layered with Real California ingredients – from the milk and cheese to the heavy cream, gouda, and Dry Jack. And in between those layers? A whole lot of vegetables! You'll be surprised to find that all of these nutrient-packed ingredients can fit into on 12-inch cast-iron skillet, but they sure can.

Stratas are essentially a savory bread pudding and are a lot of fun to make. Even though there are a few steps involved, they're simple and easy to put together. This strata makes for a one-pan skillet meal as well, which means that there's little to clean up when everything is said and done.

I love making casseroles like this because vegetables and dairy pair so perfectly together – in taste AND nutrition! Packed with essential vitamins and minerals, be sure to look for the Real California Milk seal on dairy products when you're shopping for your holiday meals at stores across the U.S.

Cheesy Kale, Mushroom, and Fennel Strata with Real California Gouda Cheese

Time: 1 Hour, 30 Minutes
Serves: 6-8

Ingredients
8 oz sourdough bread, cubed into 1" pieces
4 Tbsp. Real California butter, divided
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
8 oz cremini or shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 fennel bulbs, halved, cored, thinly sliced
1 small bunch kale, stemmed, torn into pieces
6 large eggs
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1-2 tsp tabasco sauce
Pinch of nutmeg
1 tsp lemon zest
1 cup Real California milk
½ cup Real California heavy cream or half & half (for a lighter option)
1 cup Real California gouda cheese, grated, divided
1/3 cup Real California Dry Jack cheese, grated, divided

Directions
Preheat oven to 250°F. Add bread cubes to a rimmed baking sheet and bake until starting to just crisp around the edges, about 7-8 minutes. Remove bread from heat and allow to cool. Increase heat to 350°F.

Heat 1 tbsp butter in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Add garlic and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add mushrooms in batches, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until golden, about 4 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to a bowl.

To the same skillet, heat 1 tbsp butter over medium-high heat. Add fennel and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until softened, about 6-8 minutes. Return mushrooms to the skillet. In batches, stir in kale until wilted, about 5 minutes. Transfer vegetable mixture to a bowl.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs, Dijon, tabasco sauce, nutmeg, and lemon zest. Then whisk in the milk and heavy cream with ½ tsp salt and 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper.

Wipe out the skillet and coat with 2 tbsp butter. Layer half of the sourdough in the skillet and follow with half of the vegetable mixture and half the gouda and Dry Jack. Repeat with remaining bread and kale. Pour over the whisked eggs and press down into the bread with a spatula. Top with remaining gouda and Dry Jack.

Transfer skillet to the oven and bake for 35 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from heat and serve warm.

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If you loved this recipe, you will also love my recipes for: Real California Milk Charcuterie Board, Thanksgiving Skillet Pizza, and Real California Breakfast Salad!

Sopes with Potato-Chorizo Hash and Real California Queso Fresco

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If you haven’t heard of sopes yet, get ready to make some! These sopes come with a scrumptious potato and chorizo hash and are topped with Real California queso fresco. Did anyone say yum yet?!

Similar to tacos, sopes are made with masa, but are pressed into a different shape that offers a different mouthfeel. They can be topped with any of the ingredients you love in tacos. They can be fried like the recipe below, or for lighter fare, they can be cooked on a griddle.

I paired these sopes with a Peruvian sauce called aji verde. It’s spicy from the jalapeños, but creamy from the Real California queso and really serves this recipe well.

Don’t forget to look for the Real California Milk seal when purchasing your cheese for this recipe or any other dairy recipe. Real California Milk produces sustainable dairy foods that offer nutritional benefits that are unique from plant-based foods. What more can you ask for?

Sopes with Potato-Chorizo Hash and Real California Queso Fresco

[Sponsored]

Time: 1 Hour
Serves 6-8
Makes 16 Sopes

Ingredients

Aji Verde Sauce
Canola oil
1 small onion, roughly chopped
4-6 medium jalapeno peppers, seeded
1 large garlic clove, peeled
1/2 cup cilantro, leaves and stems, packed
1/2 tsp salt
¾ cup Real California queso fresco

Masa Dough
3 cups instant yellow corn masa flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
¼ cup lard, melted
2 ¼ cups water
Canola oil

Potato Chorizo Hash
1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
2 lb fresh Mexican chorizo
Kosher salt
2 small white onions, finely chopped
18 medium epazote leaves, roughly chopped (optional)

To Garnish
Real California queso fresco
Chopped cilantro leaves, for serving
Lime wedges

Directions
In a medium skillet, heat 2 tbsp canola over medium heat. Sauté the onion, peppers, and garlic until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the pepper mixture to a blender with 2 tbsp olive oil, cilantro, salt, and queso fresco. Blend until creamy, about 1 minute. Season with salt if desired and transfer to the refrigerator to cool.

Combine the masa, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Stir in lard and water. Mix thoroughly for 2 minutes to form a smooth dough. Form dough into 16 individual 2-inch balls and set aside on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Press each masa ball into the palms of your hands to form a ¼-inch thick round. Crimp the edges of each round to form a crust.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Heat ¾-inches of oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat to 400 degrees F. Working in batches, fry 3 sope boats on one side for 2 minutes. Turn sopes over and cook for 2 more minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a baking sheet and move to the oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining sope boats.

Add the potatoes to a bowl with ¼ cup water. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pierce with a fork a few times. Microwave for 4-5 minutes until the potatoes break easily with a fork. Drain off water.

In a medium skillet, cook chorizo over medium-high heat and break up with a spoon until the chorizo starts to brown, about 1 minute. Continue breaking up the chorizo with a spoon and add the onion. Sauté with chorizo for 10 minutes, until the onion is soft. Add the potatoes and lower the heat to medium. With the back of a cooking spoon, mash the potatoes into the chorizo and allow to brown for a minute. Scoop up the mixture and mash again, continuing this process about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are crispy. Season with salt to taste.

Assemble 2-3 sope boats per plate and top with chorizo filling and aji verde. Garnish with queso fresco and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.

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If you loved this recipe, you will love my recipes for Chicken Mole Verde Tacos, Mushroom Tacos with Fried Eggs, and  Mushroom & Pesto Quesadillas!

Crudites Platter with Real California Milk Dipping Sauces

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This holiday season, get your vegetable and dairy fix with Real California Milk dipping sauces! I know it’ll be a favorite at my holiday get-togethers.

Do you ever walk by the produce stands at farmers’ market and wish you could buy ALL of the vegetables? That is a problem I have a little too often.

Eyeing some of my favorite items like romanesco, watermelon radishes, and endives, I know it wouldn’t be ideal to incorporate all of them all into a single recipe, like say, pasta, or even in a traditional salad.

But I have a solution for all of your vegetable lovers out there - crudites! Crudites are a simple raw vegetable platter eaten by the French as an appetizer, typically with a dipping sauce. How healthy is that?

On a recent visit to Farmers’ market, I was inspired to finally buy all of the vegetables I wanted because I could easily serve them as crudites and pair them with two Real California Milk dipping sauces. Both with sour cream, but one with Dry Jack and one with cottage cheese. All amazing products from my home state that make for the easy, tasty, and convenient snacks!

After prepping the veggies on a Sunday, my husband and I had a full platter of healthy snacks to finish up by Wednesday. Thanks to the delicious Real California Milk dipping sauces, we thoroughly enjoyed eating raw vegetables between meals. Three to four servings of vegetables per person, per day = no problem! Amazing considering only 9% of Americans eat enough veggies.

Equally as cool as getting in my veggies, my husband and I were certainly getting in our recommended servings of dairy per day. Did you know that the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend three servings of dairy foods each day?

That’s because dairy is nutrient-rich and when consumed as part of a healthy diet, it may help prevent diseases like osteoporosis, hypertension, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Note: one serving = 8 oz of milk, a 6-8 oz container of yogurt, or 1 ½ oz. of natural cheese.

So while Real California Milk dairy is tasty, fast, and convenient, it can also help you be your healthiest self! Not a bad combo of nutritional benefits in my opinion! So what are you waiting for? Dive into your Real California Milk dairy this holiday season!

Crudites Platter with Real California Milk Dipping Sauces

[Sponsored]

Time: 30 Minutes
Serves 8

Ingredients

Zesty Dry Jack Dipping Sauce
⅓ cup Real California Dry Jack cheese, grated
¾ cup Real California sour cream
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 anchovy, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Arugula & Cottage Cheese Dipping Sauce
½ cup Real California cottage cheese
¼ cup Real California sour cream
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
2 oz arugula
¼ cup chives, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crudites
3 rainbow carrots, peeled, cut into ½-inch thick sticks
1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 small head romanesco, cut into florets
1 endive head, trimmed, leaves separated
2 zucchini, sliced lengthwise, ¼-inch thick
½ lb green beans
½ lb snap peas
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 small watermelon radish, sliced ¼-inch thick lengthwise, cut into quarters
1 bunch red radishes
1 bunch green onions, light and dark green parts, trimmed

Directions
Add all ingredients of Real California Milk Dry Jack Dip to a food processor. Blend until smooth. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste if desired. Add dip to a medium bowl. Set aside.

Prepare Real California Milk Arugula & Cottage Cheese Dip by adding all ingredients to a food processor. Blend until smooth. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste if desired. Add dip to a medium bowl.

Add dipping bowls to the center of a large platter. Arrange crudites around bowl until visually pleasing! Enjoy!

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If you loved this recipe, you will love my recipes for Flank Steak with Roasted Vegetables, Crisp-Braised Duck Legs, and Roasted Trout with Herbs and Summer Squash!