Kale and Chilli Pasta

Ingredients

• 1 onion
• 300g kale (I love the Cavolo Nero variety with this dish but others will also work fine)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 red chilli (or chilli flakes can be used) add according to taste

From the cupboard

• sunflower / vegetable oil
• extra virgin olive oil
• 500g fusilli pasta (or your preferred pasta shape)
• 100g cashew nuts
• Salt & pepper

Vegan ‘extra’: If you already have these extra items in your store cupboard you could make a vegan Parmesan alternative that tops off this pasta dish beautifully. For 100g cashews, crush the cashew nuts first (or whizz with a blender) add 4 tbsp nutritional yeast and 1 tsp garlic salt (or normal salt)

Instructions

1. Dice the onion and peel the garlic
2. Chop the chilli finely and retain the seeds for extra heat. You can add as much of the chilli as you like to regulate the heat it will bring to the dish.
3. Wash the kale and then chop into ribbons across the stem – leave the water left clinging to the kale as this will be useful when cooking
4. Add the onion to a wide base saucepan with 1 tbsp sunflower / vegetable oil and saute on a low heat so that it softens and just starts to turn brown
5. Add the pasta to a pan of boiling water and cook to the time required until al dente. (normally 7-10 mins – check directions on packet)
6. Crush the garlic and add with the chilli to the pan and give a quick stir
7. Add the kale ribbons, layering the wider parts of the kale stem closer to the bottom of the pan with the more leafy ribbons towards to the top. This is because the kale stems will need a little bit more cooking but don’t worry too much! Add a lid to the pan to allow the kale to steam for a couple of minutes. We want to retain the beautiful bright green colour of the kale that starts to show as it begins to cook (and not overcook it where the colour starts to fade)
8. Remove the lid and stir through with a good glug of extra virgin olive and remove the pan from the heat
9. Add your cooked pasta to the Kale and chilli mix and stir through, ensuring the pasta is evenly coated
10. Add salt and black pepper to taste
11. Sprinkle with crushed cashew nuts (or the nuts and nutritional yeast mix)

The kale mix can be used in other dishes such as:

• Risotto – make a basic / white risotto and add then stir through the kale and chilli mix at the end.
• Potato cakes – great for using up leftover mash (or cook some potatoes and mash them with skins included) – then add as a layer inside the potato cakes or mix through, mould into patties ready to shallow fry in a little oil, turning after a few minutes to brown each side.
• Mash – maybe leave out the chilli and add to your mash for some extra flavour and colour!