This is a simple pasta dish that is easy to make with good for you kale and the most delicious and healthy of results.

The inspiration

My daughter Sridevi came home from a long week of presentations at her company off-site in Half Moon Bay, California recently.  She had a great time at the meeting – I mean what’s not to like about Half Moon Bay? Spectacular scenery and unusually warm temperatures in February made her stay in this beach town a California dream. 

It seems a week’s worth of attending meetings and making sure the event was going smoothly made her exhausted by the time she came home. It was the Sunday after her return and here she is asking me “What’s for lunch Mom?”  Ugh!! Was my reaction.

Lunch is always a pain for me to make because I mostly focus on cooking a healthy dinner. But here Sri was feeling all tiered, had the sniffles, a body ache 🤒😓 and wanted something warm with lots of veggies for lunch.  I felt bad.  

I really had no excuse not to make something warm and comforting on a Sunday afternoon.

About the recipe

So for our lunch I used a giant bunch of kale that my friend Rita had dropped of a few days earlier, sautéd them with garlic and olive oil, and tossed it in a pasta topped with fresh cheese. That’s it, simple, wholesome, and delicious.

Kale Pasta

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pasta of your choice. I used curly campanelle.
• 1 large bunch of kale ribs removed and leaves cut into small pieces. About 6 cups.
• 4-5 garlic cloves finely chopped
• A few cherry tomatoes if you have
• 1/2 tsp red chili flakes
• Olive oil
• Salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder (optional)
• Cheese of your choice for garnish (optional). I used queso fresco.

Directions:

• In a large pot heat 2 tbsp oil. Add red chili flakes and garlic and sauté for a few seconds. Add cut kale, cherry tomatoes and 1/2 tsp salt and cook kale for 5- 10 minutes until kale leaves are tender.
• In the meantime cook pasta according to package directions.
• Add cooked pasta to the cooked kale and toss together. Add garlic powder if using and mix-in. Taste and adjust for salt.  Serve pasta warm with garnish of cheese.