January is a dark, gloomy month for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. For many of us it is a month of tightening the financial belt and loosening the trouser belt (whilst making plans to get fit) after the excesses of Christmas.
This is a dish which ticks all those resolution boxes – healthy, economical and it looks like Spring in a bowl, which is no bad thing. The garlic will ward away germs (or so my old Italian aunties always told me), it’s quick to prepare and you’ll feel comfortably full but without the feelings of guilt after eating this. Sounds good to me!
This dish was food for the poor folk…simple ingredients (although if you can afford to use your best olive oil, I’d highly recommend it) and no fuss to make.
Quantities are easily halved or doubled, I used regular kale as I didn’t have cavolo nero (also known as black leaf kale), and it was delicious. The colour was a more vibrant green than the almost black-green you get with cavolo nero.
Ingredients (to serve 2 people very generously)
- 200g of kale leaves
- Approx 100ml of extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves of garlic, peeled
- Maldon (or coarse) sea salt and black pepper
- Grated parmesan to serve (optional)
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the kale and 2 of the garlic cloves for about 5 minutes until soft. It needs to be slightly more than wilted, but not soggy. Drain and put into a food processor.
As you start processing the kale, add slugs of olive oil to the mix until you have a slightly sloppy paste – rather like pesto.
Crush the remaining clove of garlic with a teaspoon of rough salt and add 2 teaspoons of olive oil then stir this into the kale mixture. Taste and season with extra salt and black pepper if necessary and then stir into your favourite pasta, making sure you keep a little of the cooking water to loosen up the pasta if necessary once you have added the kale.
To serve, add grated parmesan if liked and some folk even add a little extra drizzle of olive oil. Go on, I won’t tell anyone!
If you’d like to see how we make our olive oil in Spain, click here.
Chica Andaluza 
Ya conocía esta receta y estoy segura que le gustara’ a muchas personas , por su sencillez en prepararla y su rico sabor en comerla!
Gracias por habérmela recordado!
Es una receta tan sencilla pero tan rica!
I love these types of recipes! Rustic, homey and so delicious! I guess I seem to gravitate to the “poor folks” dishes and they seem the best to me!!
The poor folk had to make things taste great with the few ingredients they had – and this is often the best food of all!
I can feel it doing me good from here!
😉
Great idea. We love kale, and make it with garlic, olive oil, black olives and red pepper flakes as my uncle Fred taught me.
Uncle Fred sounds like a wise man to me!
That looks yummy. I’ve just been spoiled by a friend who I edited some video for as favour. She took me to Barrafina for lunch – I think I just had the best allioli ever! If Big Man gets home sick, you must take him there 😉
Am just off to check out your Barrafina post!
🙂
I used to laugh at that whole kale craze. Until I checked it out in theEnglish-German dictionary and realised that we had been eating it all along, in form of simple dishes like yours! Being German, we add sausage … chorizo is quite nice … 😉
Kale with sausage or chorizo sounds good to me!
It looks both healthy and tasty. I didn’t think that was possible!
Hee hee – it is possible!
Yum! This looks so good!
Thank you!
Look at that colour!! It would be a glorious feast on an overcast day! I wonder if I could make something similar with the rapini I’ve got growing in the backyard…hmmm.. x
I bet that would great with your rapini!
This post could almost have been wordless . . . somehow THAT photo tells the story in spades!!!! Wonderful!
J
Looks great!
Given the awful winter you are having, any reminder of spring is good 🙂
Too true Tandy!
I like how you blended the kale for a different texture!
Thank you – it worked well!
Looks healthy without compromising the delicious! 🙂 I love it, Chica.
Thank you J
What a gorgeous, simple and healthy pesto. It’s also seasonal. Well done, Chica! Keep your chin up till spring!
Will keep smiling until Spring for sure!
What a great idea for the kale.
I love it, but sometimes it’s nice to use it in a different way.
I am in full appreciation mode with this post Ms Chica and after all, Cavolo nero is just black kale after all ;). LOOOOOVE the olive crushing post! I reckon my comment went to spam though (visual) so you might have to look for it in spam to enjoy it 😉
Couldn’t get the visual to work L Glad you liked this one – I thought of you as we ate it! The olive crushing is a wonderful time, maybe we’ll try to get back to Spain for it this year.
The visual was Homer Simpson drinking straight out of the tap at the bar…my idea of olive oil heaven ;). Fingers crossed you get back for it this year as it looks like it would be a whole community event that would be well celebrated 🙂
What a fabulous colour with the kale pesto! Looks wonderful!
It was a very uplifting dish to eat!
That looks and sounds wonderful…I must be the only cook on the planet who has never bothered with the sacred kale:)
Do they have it where you are? We don’t come across it much at home in Spain.
We have kale on a regular basis but usually boiled or baked into chips. Thank you for giving me an alternative use for one of my favourite veggies! Hope you’re keeping warm in this chilly weather!
Ooh – how do you make your Kale chips?
With a bit of olive oil, little bit of salt and baked in the oven. 😀
Will be giving that a go!
I always end up with extra kale and arugula in the fridge and can’t think of what to do with it when I get tired of salads. This looks so good and reminds me that I can make pesto out of most anything green! Great pasta and definitely a bright dish during a gloomy time of year.
This would be great with any kind of green leafy veg I think!
The simple dishes always seem to be some of the best. Love the beautiful green color.
I agree – and the colour was incredible!
Hmm yummy, what a great idea. Simple and healthy pesto. Thanks for sharing chica.
You are most welcome J
Yum! it looks great
i dont like kale. but it looks delicious
I’m confused! Think I’m in last year’s posts but happy 2016 anyway! Hope all’s well with you guys? 🙂
You are indeed in last year’s post …but Happy New Year anyway!!
hemm yummyy 😀
it’s green! all green! looks like very tasty…
all green.. very great!