The British are Coming

My Club Med friend, Janine, recommended I bake something special in honor of the Royal Couple's impending visit to Santa Barbara. Since I can't pony up the $4000 to stomp divots with them, I'm hoping this gesture will temp them into at least a hand shake!

When I thought about something appropriately British to make, scones were one of the first things that came to mind. But honestly, I'm just not that into them. I think generally speaking there are muffin people and there are scone people. I'm in the former camp. I prefer moist, cakey baked options over dry, crumbly ones. Although I've never gotten that excited about scones before, this recipe got such rave reviews it did sound fit for royalty (not to mention the recipe title is a pretty strong endorsement). Plus the recipe said it took only 15 minutes to prepare which got me kind of excited. And it didn't use eggs. Is it just me or does anyone else think eggs are messy?. . . .

[On an aside, I just noticed the bottle of Marker's Mark in the background of this photo. What can I say? Doesn't everyone have that on their kitchen counter next to the bottle of olive oil?]

After whipping these up (in no more than 15 minutes), I think I know why these are a hit: they're essentially chocolate chip cookies masked as something much more refined. But per someone's suggestion, I did add more OJ than the original recipe calls for. It created a texture more palatable to me (read: less dry), but still preserves the essence of a scone.

The butter keeps them flakey and the orange zest adds a touch of flair. In short, I thought the result was a scone — but better. Some people may think this also captures Wills and Kate: royalty but better.

English Royalty Chocolate Chip Scones

from allrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup white sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

5 Tbsp unsalted butter, chilled and cubed

1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

8 Tbsp orange juice

1 tsp orange zest

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With your fingers, a fork or a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the chocolate chips and zest. Mix in the OJ to form a dough.

3. Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Pat or roll into a 9-inch circle about 1/2 inch thick. With a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, cut out 12 scones, pushing the dough scraps together for the last few, if necessary. Transfer scones to the baking sheet.

4. Bake in over until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Remove and move to wire racks to cool.

Double Take

{Author's Note: I am lame. I started this post on June 11th. It's now July 2nd and a gloriously 85+ degrees with sunny skies in Santa Barbara, with more normalized weather elsewhere, so now this entry sounds ludicrous. But it's a delicious recipe which would be perfect to make this holiday weekend, so I'm going to go ahead and finish this post. I hope you enjoy it and Happy Independence Day!}

It's summertime! Doesn't that seem to be the case as much of the country is wilting under record-breaking temps? Yet Santa Barbara remains all about June Gloom. I'm sick of waking up every day to temperatures in the mid-50s, drizzle and gray skies. It does make for good magazine reading, a favorite pastime, but I'd much prefer to do it by the pool or on the beach than wrapped in a blanket on my sofa.

I'm an admitted magazine junkie and have been having a hard time keeping up with my new inventory. It's getting a little out of hand now as the July publications are arriving in my mailbox and I'm still trying to get through my May issues.

I was absorbing each page of the June Food & Wine issue with the intensity of an X-ray technician scanning patient films in search of anything awry, reading each recipe word for word and studying each photograph as if I was committing it to memory for a test. It can be painful to watch but it's my equivalent of a kid in a candy store. This is how I read cooking magazines. That is until I came to an article called "The Virtues of Vegan Grilling." Literally, I was like, "Yawn. . . . Who wants to read that?" and my eyes glazed over. Truthfully, I've often thought vegans were missing out. You can't expect a Southern girl to understand someone who doesn't have a love affair with pork. And as a pizza and pasta fan(atic), well, it just seems nearly criminal to eschew eggs and cheese. So I mindlessly and hurriedly flipped the pages in anticipation of something of real value when my turning halted and I did a double take. . . .

There in front of my eyes was this vibrant plate filled with grilled broccoli and chunks of bread that made my mouth water. Seriously, you could almost taste the smokiness and crunchiness of the charred ingredients with just a hint of sweetness; a plate which would only be enhanced by the perfectly poured Pilsner photographed next to it while sitting at a picnic table with friends and laughing in between bites of food as the sun warmed your skin.

Instead I was alone in my house under very unfriendly grilling weather. But there was something about that photo I couldn't let go of. So much for my utter disregard for vegan cooking. . . . We may not see eye to eye on everything but they clearly had something here. So, I ran to the grocery store to gather the required provisions. Well, let's just say that I did take some liberties with the recipe because let's be honest, who, besides a vegan, wants to eat vegan ciabatta? Firstly, I've never even heard of such a thing. And secondly, where does one even find it for that matter? I know I shouldn't knock it until I try it, but do you know how awesome pillowy, chewy "real" ciabatta is?

I knew I also needed some protein to make this a meal. I opted for U.S. wild-caught shrimp, which I thought would seem less offensive to the vegans. I know that is ridiculous but I think I was hoping that picking something endorsed by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide would somehow help me gain their approval after butchering their recipe.

Since the weather was not cooperating, I had to resort to ye old grill pan. While not as good as the real thing, it still creates some beautiful grill marks and some smokiness which makes it seem almost plausible that you're eating something fresh off the Weber.

When you think about it, this dish is really just a refreshing rift on a traditional panzenella salad with tomatoes and Italian bread. It comes together quickly as there is really no marinating or prep for the ingredients. It's pretty much peel or cut and get it on the grill. I do think it will be a winning dish this summer, regardless of whether June Gloom spills into July or Fogust returns like last year.

Grilled Broccoli and Bread Salad with Pickled Shallots

Adapted from Food & Wine

Ingredients

2 large shallots, thinly sliced

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup sherry

1/8 cup sherry vinegar

1/8 cup agave syrup

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

Kosher salt

Grated zest and juice from 1 Meyers lemon (which are sweeter and juicier than traditional lemons)

1/2 cup olive oil

Freshly ground pepper

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp crushed red pepper

2 tsp chopped rosemary

1 1/2 lbs broccoli, cut into long spears, stems peeled

1 1/2 - 2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined (depending on what you want your protein to vegetable ratio to be and how filling you want this salad to be)

1/2 lb ciabatta, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices

2 Tbsp toasted pine nuts

Directions

1. Put the shallots and the raisins in two separate, small, heat-proof bowls. In a small sauce pan, combine the sherry, sherry vinegar, and agave syrup and bring to a boil. Pour 2 Tbsp of hot mixture over raisins; pour the rest over the shallots and add the thyme and 1 tsp of salt. Cover both bowls.

2. Light a grill or grill pan. Combine the lemon zest and juice with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Set aside 4 Tbsp of the dressing. Add garlic, crushed red pepper and rosemary to the remaining dressing in the bowl.

3. On a rimmed baking sheet, place the broccoli on one side and the shrimp on the other (so they're segregated on the sheet). Drizzle half the dressing over each side and toss well, with just a Tbsp reserve to drizzle over the cubed bread. Grill the broccoli over moderate heat, turning, until lightly chard and just tender, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer broccoli to a bowl, cover with foil and let steam for an additional 5 minutes. Add the shrimp to the grill and grill each side approximately 2 minutes, until opaque and cooked through. Remove and place in a large serving bowl. Don't overcook--the shrimp will keep cooking after you remove it. Finally, add the ciabatta slices until crisp, maybe 1 minute each side.

4. Cut the ciabatta into 1-inch cubes. Add to the bowl with shrimp, along with the broccoli. Drain the raisins and shallots and add to the salad. Drizzle with reserved dressing and pine nuts. Mix well and serve. Yields: 4 servings.

Up in the Air

This seems to be a place I'm spending a lot of my time lately. The 6:00 am flights are kind of a drag at times when the alarm goes off at 4:00 am, but it is awe-inspiring to see the sunrises . . .

. . . and the sunsets from up in the air.

I always loved the view from the top when you're above the clouds. It looks like a big marshmellow-y carpet that I want to run on. Granted that probably wouldn't end well for a number of reasons, but it doesn't diminish the allure for me.

I've spent a lot of time waking up in new cities . . .

. . . and finding new acquaintances in close quarters, like these lovely critters caught in between the plane window panes.

It's always great to get home, but it's often not a well-stocked one (except for alcohol). It can be a bit exhausting too to fly all over the place so the idea of spending all day in the kitchen making a tasty spread seems like more energy than I can muster some days. After ordering pizza for 3 days in a row, I finally realize that I have to make a change. . . .

And then it's frozen dinner time! That's right, it seems like some days all the cooking energy I can expend is to push 3:00 on my microwave and watch the plastic tray go around and around like a zombie.

Thankfully Trader Joe's has some pretty good options. This one has been in high rotation of late. The finished product always looks better on the box though, doesn't it?

The good news is that since I started microwavin' I've got more time for . . . . ;-)

Happy June, y'all! [Can you believe it's already June?!]

Homey

This time last week I was at the Kentucky Derby. It was honestly one of the funnest events I've ever been to. It may have been that I could drink mint juleps for 12-hours straight—and I wasn't the only person doing it. It might be because I was with a group of super awesome friends (new and old) and we were all dressed up fancy, which I don't get to do often enough in casual, beachy California. I do know it wasn't because I won any money, that's for sure. I also just love new adventures and experiences. It makes me feel alive, like I'm really taking advantage of my time on this Earth.

Because I played hooky from work for a few days to attend, I landed in Santa Barbara and found myself walking smack into a brutal marathon of professional commitments. I believe in the motto, "you've gotta pay to play," so I'm not complaining, but I must say Friday couldn't come soon enough this week. I'd been functioning in zombie mode for the past few days, just trying to keep afloat and make sure no balls dropped. When I woke up this morning I felt like I could finally take a deep breath and relax. It felt so good to wake up with the sunshine streaming through my window in my own bed. I don't think I moved once during the night so it felt good to stretch out, my toes feeling the cold undisturbed corners of the sheets.

Once I'd run the requisite errands, it was luxurious to just sink into my sofa and watch a few episodes of Glee I'd missed with all my recent travels and read through a stack of magazines that'd been piling up. As much as I love to travel, it felt decidedly wonderful to be home. When hunger got the best of me, I wandered into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator half expecting it to be filled with oodles of fresh Farmers Market produce and a lovely salmon filet. For a girl who's spent 15 out of the last 28 days on the road, I'd say that was clearly delusional. Instead I found 26 jars of condiments, some wilted celery, a dried out bag of baby carrots, an expired carton of milk, and a 6-pack of beer. Not exactly inspiring. As I walked toward the pantry, I spied the cover of the May issue of Bon Appetit. On it was a bowl of simple pasta pomodoro, claiming to be the "simplest, silkiest sauce you'll ever make." In that moment, I couldn't think of anything more perfect or homey than that bowl of pasta. Thank goodness I had the few necessary ingredients on hand because I simply couldn't bare the thought of having to leave my house again.

So I began chopping, sautéing, stirring, simmering, which felt almost meditative after being out of the kitchen for so long. I even loved that my windows were starting to fog up from the kitchen heat.

Shortly thereafter, I found myself eating this lovely bowl of pasta delicately coated in a truly delicious sauce. The simplicity was where the genius laid. At times I love nothing more than to spend an entire day composing a ridiculously complex dish. But tonight, I just wanted to sit down with a beautiful glass of wine, spin a few strands of painted pasta around my fork and turn pages in a magazine while sitting on a bar stool in my own kitchen. It was no Kentucky Derby, but it was perfect.

Pasta al Pomodoro

from Bon Apetit

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

1 28-oz can San Marzano tomatoes, crushed

1 Tbsp kosher salt

5 large basil leaves, chopped

12 oz spaghetti or capellini

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino

Directions

Heat olive oil in a 12" skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion, stirring until soft, about 12 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 2-4 minutes. Add a pinch (or more) of pepper flakes; cook for 1 minute. Add can of tomatoes and season with salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens slightly and the flavors meld, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in basil and set aside.

Meanwhile bring 3 quarts of salted water to a boil and add pasta. Cook according to directions but remove 1-2 minutes before tender. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking water. Stir in the pasta water to loosen the sauce; bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring, until sauce coasts pasta, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter and cheese. Transfer to bowls and serve with more cheese if desired. Yield: 4 servings.

Cause for Celebration

This photo was taken 33 years ago. My father was serving at Fort Leavenworth, KS (the military post not the penitentiary, just to clarify) and it was the day he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army. I don't remember much about the day but I remember being horribly shy and not wanting to pose for this picture.

This photo was taken today. My brother retired from the US Army as a Lieutenant Colonel. It's frankly hard to believe so much time has elapsed; that we're all grown up. Because it does seem like just yesterday my brother and I celebrated the bicentennial in Fort Leavenworth by walking around the neighborhood banging pots and pans (and I remember being a little scared of the fireworks); or my brother matriculated at West Point as a Plebe cadet, or we celebrated my father's own retirement after 30 years in the Army. I mean, where do the years go?

Even though it seems like time does slip through our fingers, the many rich moments remain tattooed on our souls in a way that shape us into the people we are today. I'm so proud of my brother and his selfless and courageous service for the past two decades. The Nation has much to thank him for. But above all, as the head of the ROTC program at University of Tampa, I think it's a fitting swan song that Rob is shaping the future leaders and protectors of our country. I'm so proud of him, respect him immensely and feel blessed to call him my brother but more so my friend. People love Rob and were happy to come together today to help send him on his way in this next chapter. Because ever so often you meet people who make a real impact in your life. That's Rob. He doesn't try to be that way. He just is.

So today was a day of celebration. It was rather infectious actually. We all had a bit of a hop in our step, a brighter smile on our faces, were kinder to strangers, and more patient with loved ones. It was also a little bit surreal but isn't life like that to some degree? It keeps you on your toes and also reminds you of how important it is to honor and respect and remember and celebrate.

In that vein, I wanted to remind you that tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo, a day set aside to celebrate Mexico's heritage and history. I mean, who doesn't love a good margarita?! While this south of the border holiday may not be universally recognized, the folks south of the Mason-Dixon line have never been one to shy away from a reason to party. So even if you're not Mexican, or Southern, or your awesome brother didn't just retire after 20 years of kicking ass in the Army, you should celebrate. Because life is good. Trust me. Look closer if you have to, but it's there . . . beautifully there.

Whether it's the unconditional lick of love from a fuzzy creature; or the beautiful draping of Spanish moss on a warm Southern night; or finding yourself surrounded by people you love even though they drive you a little crazy; or the fact that you can run to 7-11 at 2 am and pay for vitamin-infused bottled water. . . . I mean, really, life is quite grand. Embarrassingly grand. Quietly grand. Remarkably grand.

So celebrate. Make this delicious guacamole. Make these margaritas. Because both are ridiculously good . . . and ridiculously easy, yet make things feel a bit special. But be prepared to have people high-fiving you like a Navy SEAL who just took out OBL.

Salud!

Guacamole with Roasted Chile, Cumin and Feta

from Fine Cooking

Note: For whatever reason, the roasted poblano transforms the typical jalapeño-infused guacamole.

Ingredients

1 poblano chile

1 medium lime

3 firm-ripe avocados, pitted and peeled

3 medium scallions, white and light-green parts only, chopped

5 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 tsp ground cumin, preferably freshly ground

Kosher salt

1/2 cup medium-diced fresh tomato

2 radishes, slivered

1 Tbsp crumbled feta cheese

Directions

On a gas stove, turn a burner to high and set the chile directly over the flame, turning it with tong, until completely charred, 5-8 minutes. Put the chile in a bowl, cover, and set aside to steam and loosen the skin. When cook enough to handle, peel, seed and finely chop.

Finely grate the zest from the lie and then squeeze the juice. Put the avocado in a bowl and mash with a potato masher or back of a fork. Stir in the lime zest and 2 Tbsp of the lime juice along with the scallions, cilantro, cumin, and 1/2 tsp salt. Season to taste with salt and lime juice. and then fold in the chile and tomato.

Heap the guacamole into a bowl and garnish it with the radish and feat. Serve with tortilla chips.

From Time to Time

Do you have a sweet tooth? Some people are sweet fanatics. I'm more like a transient, lackluster sweet eater, usually drawn to the beauty and color more than the flavor and joy of consumption. I loved Halloween as a kid mainly because it was a competition with my brother to see who could get the most candy, but truthfully the candy sat around until Easter when my mom threw it out. Then the enormous chocolate bunny we received in our Easter basket went into the fridge, looking quite noble, until Halloween rolled around and my mom once again threw out our sweet stash. I suppose that's why when someone asks if they can bring something to a party I usually ask them to bring dessert because I'm just not that enthusiastic about making it or really even eating it. I know that's blasphemy to some, but you should thank me because it means you can have my slice of cake.

I'm the person who would rather eat another piece of bread than pie because I like fat more than sugar. You know why? Because it makes everything taste better.

Let's be honest, which one do you want:

(a) Snackwell chocolate chip cookie

(b) Ben & Jerry's cookies 'n' cream ice cream

Or how about:

(a) Melba toast

(b) Croissant

If you didn't answer (b) to both of those questions, you're lying. My point is that fat creates satisfying, luscious food. And while I do try to eat healthy a good bit of the time, holidays and gatherings seem to bring out the fat-laden food. I'm not advocating a meal staged to induce a heart attack, but we all deserve to treat ourselves to something indulgent from time to time.

I hosted the annual Peeps Regatta at the (temporary) Malia Yacht Club on Easter Sunday. There were about 20 people there, of which almost half were under the age of 3, poised to see who would claim this year's title of Premier Peep Racer. But first we needed to be properly sated. To kick things off, I served a gorgonzola bacon dip along with freshly squeezed blood orange mimosas.

Then came this question: "What is in this dip?!" My response was, "Fat!" That was basically the truth. I took cream choose, half and half, gorgonzola cheese and bacon and baked it into a warm, gooey, fatty goodness, and people basically couldn't stop eating it. Hmmm, I wonder why. . . . One cannot resist such a combination of rich ingredients.

After we finished eating the ham, mushroom spinach strata, the frisee salad with roasted fingerling potatoes, asparagus and snap peas, and the beautiful and sweet "rabbit" pineapple fruit salad ("Thanks, Todd and Ronda!"), it was off to the races!

On an aside, the Peeps Regatta almost didn't happen. I went to 12 different stores before I could find our "vessels!" There was a strange run on these fellows and I kept walking into store after store to find this:

Panic was starting to set in (because how can you have a Peeps Regatta with no peeps?!), when I finally spied these. Granted, they're not the most conventional color, but hey, you gotta take what you can get sometimes.

It didn't seem to deter any of the racers. While Samantha was the defending champ, it was anyone's game. There are not many Regatta rules other than you can't touch your peep.

Reece took matters into her own hands and decided she'd blow on her peep, which was probably 200 feet from her mouth, but hey it must've worked because she walked away this year's winner.

And we were lucky that only one three-year old ended up in the pool. Do you want to guess which one it was?

We've had kind of an iffy spring in Santa Barbara this year but the weather was pretty glorious last Sunday. I think we all enjoyed a day with the sun on our skin, grass between our toes, and laughter with good friends.

Happy Spring! And thank you, Marina, for so many great photos from the day!

Blue Cheese-Bacon Dip

from Southern Living

Ingredients

7 bacon slices, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 (8-oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup half and half

4 oz crumbled blue cheese

2 Tbsp chopped chives

3 Tbsp chopped walnuts, toasted

Grape clusters

Assorted crackers

Directions

Cook bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat 10 minutes or until crisp. Drain bacon and set aside. Add minced garlic to the skillet and saute 1 minute.

Beat cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add half and half, beating until combined. Stir in bacon, garlic, blue cheese, and chives. Spoon mixture into a 1-quart baking dish (or 4 one-cup ramekins).

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Sprinkle evenly with chopped walnuts and serve with grape clusters and crackers.

Calling an Audible

Well, that was disappointing. . . . I mean the dinner I just made. I haven't made a meal in, well, I can't even remember, so I was looking forward to getting in the kitchen and reconnecting with my inner domestic goddess. Well, she must have been hungover after a big night or something because she totally left me high and dry. Or more like high and hungry.

I've been wanting to make a quinoa, garbanzo, and spinach salad with smoked paprika dressing for weeks now. And tonight was finally going to be the night. I realize now as I read over the title of the recipe that my life has taken a sad turn for the worst if that dish was getting me excited. At best it's a healthy vegetarian salad you'd get from Whole Foods—nutritious but not something you take pleasure in eating. And sadly, that's exactly what it was like. After about four forkfuls I dumped it out and grabbed some turkey jerky from the pantry. You can take the girl out of the South but you can't take the South out of the girl. . . .

Anyway, I started fantasizing about this Swiss chard and mushroom lasagna kissed with white truffle oil I made about a month ago. It was so dang good. I would've paid a thousand dollars to have had just four forkfuls of that deliciousness. It's definitely a vegetarian meal you don't want to miss—unlike the garbanzo bean quinoa salad. It was the perfect balance of richness and earthiness. So satisfying and almost "meaty." Certainly not something you'd find sitting in between the vegan egg salad or tofu farro wrap. No, this is the kind of dish the most diehard meat and potato man would savor and ask for seconds. I promise.

I did make it for the only hunter I know in Santa Barbara, my neighbor. Although he was born and raised in Californian, I think he would make a good honorary Southerner. Nothing cracks me up more than when he's defeathering ducks in his driveway after a successful outing while drinking bourbon. It's about as common as seeing a McCain-Palin sticker on someone's car in town. Anyway, he helped me with a house issue so I made him this lasagna as a thank you.

I love a good lasagna but wanted something lighter and fresher than your traditional meat lasagna in red sauce. I sampled as I was cooking and it smelled so good and tasted even better. As I started to assemble the dish, I realized it was too good to part with! So I called an audible and divided the lasagna into two smaller pans: one for me and one for my neighbor. Lasagna is something that typically can feed an Army so I was a little embarrassed to give him what was obviously only half a pan. It'd be like giving someone half a cake. But I hoped he'd forget all about my tackiness once he tasted it.

The base was a beautiful combination of carrots, criminis, onions and chard. I added kale because I had it and thought it would work well with the chard. The béchamel sauce was lighter than some I've sampled, still having the body required but was more subtly nuanced with notes of nutmeg and cloves. There was lovely, melty Fontina cheese added to the mix for nuttiness. And with no bake noodles the end product tasted more homemade—and you weren't getting bites where there was nothing but noodle.

My neighbor is still singing the praises of that meal, which is excellent for me because I'm worthless when it comes to dealing with house issues. I just noticed today my gutter is starting to fall off on one side of my house so it may be time to whip up another batch of the Swiss chard and mushroom lasagna . . . . .

Swiss Chard Lasagna with Ricotta and Mushroom

from Bon Appetit

Ingredients

Béchamel Sauce:

2 1/2 cups whole milk

1 Turkish bay leaf

6 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

Pinch of cloves

Swiss Chard and Mushroom Layers:

1 lb each Swiss chard and kale, center rib and stem cut from each leaf

4 Tbsp olive oil, divided

1 1/2 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 cup chopped carrot

4 large garlic cloves, divided

1/4 tsp dried crushed red pepper

Corse kosher salt

1 lb crimini mushrooms, sliced

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Lasagna:

9 7x3-in no bake lasagna noodles

Olive oil

1 15-oz container whole-milk ricotta cheese (preferably organic), divided

6 oz Fontina cheese, coarsely grated (about 1 1/2 cups packed), divided

8 Tbsp finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Preparation

For the Béchamel sauce:

Bring milk and bay leaf to a simmer in medium saucepan; remove from heat. Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and whisk to blend. Cook 2 minutes, whisking almost constantly (do not let roux brown). Gradually whisk milk with bay leaf into roux. Add 1/2 tsp coarse salt, nutmeg and cloves and bring to a simmer. Cook until sauce thickens enough to coat spoon, whisking often, about 3 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Note: Sauce can be made one day ahead. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface and chill. Remove plastic wrap and rewarm before using, whisking to smooth.

For Swiss chard layer:

Blanch chard and kale in a large pot of boiling salted water 1 minute. Drain, pressing out all water, then chop coarsely. Heat 2 Tbsp oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, half of garlic and crushed red pepper. Saute until tender, about 4 minutes. Mix in chard and kale and season to taste with coarse salt and freshly ground pepper.

Heat remaining 2 Tbsp oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and remaining garlic. Saute until mushrooms are brown and tender, about 8 minutes. Mix in nutmeg and season with salt and pepper.

For Lasagna:

Brush 13x9x2-in glass baking dish with oil to coat. Spread 3 Tbsp béchamel sauce thinly over bottom of dish. Arrange 3 noodles in dish to cover bottom. Spread half of chard mixture over pasta. Drop half of ricotta over in dollops and spread in even layer. Sprinkle with half of Fontina, then 4 Tbsp Parmesan; spread 3/4 cup béchamel over. Repeat layering with 3 noodles, remaining chard mixture, ricotta, Fontina, Parmesan, and 3/4 cup béchamel. Cover with remaining 3 noodles and remaining béchamel. Note: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover with foil and let stand at room temperature.

Preheat over to 400 degrees and bake lasagna covered for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until heated through and top is golden brown, maybe 20-30 minutes longer. Let stand 15 minutes and sprinkle with a little bit of white truffle oil before serving.