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Sweet Potato and Kale Gratin is the perfect holiday gluten-free and paleo-friendly side dish! It’s made with sweet potatoes, kale, milk, flour, garlic and lemon juice. The lemon juice adds so much freshness and the minced garlic – so much flavor. The flavors in this side dish are so rich and delicious! Don’t let the simple presentation of the gratin fool it, your guests will love it, and they will be asking for seconds.
Not only is this recipe amazingly delicious but it is also very easy and quick to make. It has only a handful of main ingredients and takes approximately 30 minutes to cook. I am definitely making it for Thanksgiving this year! This sweet potato and kale gratin recipe has become a favorite Thanksgiving side dish but it also goes wonderfully as a side dish with other meats. I like to serve it with roasted chicken or ham.
Tips for Making Sweet Potato and Kale Gratin
- Use a mandoline slicer to slice the sweet potatoes into even slices. That guarantees that the sweet potato slices will cook evenly.
- Prep the veggies ahead and keep them wrapped in ziplock bags, they will be good refrigerated for several days.
- If you are serving a larger crowd, I would recommend to double the recipe and use a larger baking dish or to make two gratins. This recipe serves about 6 people.
More Gluten-free and Paleo-friendly Thanksgiving recipes:
If you are looking for more delicious holiday side dishes, you might like these.
Broccoli Salad 
Sweet Potato Slices 
Roasted Root Vegetables Roasted Butternut Squash and Apples Green Beans Recipe
Thanksgiving is just 1 day away! It’s hard to believe how quickly this year flew by. My little boy just turned 1 a couple of weeks ago. There is so much I am thankful for this year – from good health to a good job, to making fun and precious memories with my family.
Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and a great time with your family and friends! And I hope you are willing to add this recipe to your Thanksgiving menu as well. 🙂 If you do, I would love to hear from you how you liked it.
What is the Thanksgiving dish you can’t live without? I would love to hear from you in a comment below.
Sweet Potato and Kale Gratin
INGREDIENTS
- 1 lb sweet potatoes, halved lengthwise & cut in 1/4″ slices
- 1 bunch kale, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 4 Tablespoon butter
- 3 Tablespoon gluten-free flour (or all-purpose)
- 3/4 cup organic whole milk
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 450 F. In a large pan, heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil on medium-high until hot. Add the sweet potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes until lightly browned and slightly softened. Add the chopped kale, season with salt and pepper, cook, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes until slightly wilted. Add ½ cup of water and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes, or until the kale has wilted and the water has cooked off. Stir in the lemon juice. Remove from heat.
- In a medium pan, heat the butter on medium-high until melted. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the flour and cook, whisking frequently, 30 seconds, or until well combined. Slowly whisk in the milk and ½ cup of water; cook, whisking frequently, about 3 minutes, or until thickened. Turn off the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer the cooked vegetables to the pot of béchamel sauce; stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to a baking dish. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven. Let stand for about 5 minutes before serving.
NUTRITION
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This recipe was so easy and delicious! I was cleaning out my fridge and I was able to make it work with the ingredients that I had on hand. I used white wine in place of lemon juice, almond milk instead of whole milk, and added some chopped cauliflower. I also added paprika, chili powder, and oregano to the béchamel. Before baking, I added some freshly shredded cheddar cheese and Italian breadcrumbs. I will be making this again!
Could you use frozen kale instead of fresh?
I haven’t tried it with frozen kale before but I believe you can. You just have to squeeze it really well and make sure you remove all the extra moisture that has accumulated while frozen.
Just made this and it was amazing! I added shredded cheese and toasted breadcrumbs on top too. Also added a few more spices to the bechamel: basil, paprika and chilli powder. So so good! Thanks for the recipe!
Can you make this a day ahead of time?
I haven’t tried to cook it ahead of time. I think it will reheat well but the kale might be a little bit too wilted. If you make it ahead of time, come back and let us know how it turned out.
Could I replace the milk with either coconut milk, or goat yogurt? We are out of milk..!
Yes, you should be able top replace it with coconut milk. I haven’t tried to replace it with goat yogurt but it might work as far as texture goes if you thin it out a little bit, not sure how it will taste though.
Could you replace the Kale with Spinach?
I haven’t tried it with spinach but I don’t see why you couldn’t. It should work.
Thanks a lot.
This was very good!! I did add about a tablespoon of both parm and Greek yogurt cream cheese because I couldn’t resist. Will make this again!
Can I substitute 2% milk for the whole milk? And if that milk fat is needed what else should I use?
Yes, you can use substitute it with 2% milk.
I’ve been on a sweet potato kick lately but I’ve never tried using it in a gratin. It sounds so delicious and looks creamy!
This gratin looks amazing! I love how easy it is to make.
Okay sooo I am DEFINITELY going to make this deliciousness. I just got sweet potatoes in my farm share, and a huge bag of kale. I looove au gratin!
This is so lovely and scrumptious
I would love to try this
Thanks for such a lovely recipe
This is so delicious, I love both sweet potatoes and kale!