Curried Cabbage & Kale Gratin | Food Stuff

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp fat — my preference is always animal fat, such as tallow, chicken fat, duck fat or butter, but if you are going vegetarian route, olive oil will do nicely
• 2 slices of thick-cut bacon [totally optional], preferably not the strong flavored one, cut into 1/2″ wide strips
• 1 large leek, dark green parts removed, sliced in half lengthwise, rinsed out, and sliced about 1/4″ thick
• 3 cloves of garlic, slivered
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 small cabbage head, cored, quartered and sliced not too thin
• 1 bunch kale, I used Lacinato, coarsest parts of the stems discarded, the rest coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup water for braising the cabbages
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup white bread crumbs, I used Panko
• 1 cup grated Gruyere cheese, or similar
• 2 tbsp butter, melted, for topping