Green pasta with a whole bunch of kale in the sauce
Twelve ounces of kale boiled soft, blended with lemon and Parmesan, and poured over pasta. It tastes nothing like a health measure.
At a Glance
Story
Boil the garlic alongside the kale instead of softening it in a pan. Raw garlic blitzed cold keeps its fiery edge and dominates everything; boiled garlic goes mellow and sweet and blends smooth. The same water does both jobs, so it costs nothing. And there is no need to strip the kale stems either. Boiling softens them enough that the blender will not notice.
Ingredients
- 12 oz lacinato kale
- 6 cloves garlicpeeled
- 1 lb pastaany dried shape
- 2 lemons
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 cup Parmesanfinely grated, plus more to serve
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- salt
Method
From Caroline Chambers, who rebranded it green monster pasta to get it past her children, which is a tactic worth stealing. Blended with lemon, Parmesan and the starchy cooking water, it tastes bright and creamy and not remotely virtuous.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Kale and garlic in, and cook about 8 minutes, until the garlic is fork-tender. Lift them both out with tongs, straight to the blender jug, wringing the moisture out of them as you go, and leave the water on the heat.
- Bring that same water back to the boil and cook the pasta to al dente. Scoop out a cup of the cooking liquid, then drain and return the pasta to the pot.
- While the pasta cooks, zest one lemon in on top of the kale, halve it and squeeze the juice in too. Add the oil, the Parmesan, 1 teaspoon of salt and the pepper flakes. Blend on high until there is not a fleck left in it, adding a splash of the reserved water at a time to get it turning. Do not let the blender run hot enough to dull the color.
- Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat. It should be glossy and just loose. More of the reserved water if it clings too tightly.
- More Parmesan and pepper flakes over, and the second lemon in wedges.
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