Well Texas life has been absolutely great. Especially the food. The Tex-Mex food here is amazing and we find ourselves eating out probably way more than we should. This week we tried to stay in and eat, at least, marginally healthy. Since Tex-Mex usually is all protein and carbs I decided to toss some more veggies into our diet. Every food blogger I know seems to be on the kale train but I just don’t love kale. So I thought I would try out a recipe that has kale – but hides the flavor.
I love any pesto – whether it’s in noodles, spread on bread in a sandwich, or used as a dip I think it’s just great. The flavor is always fresh, even if you freeze it and use it months later it tastes fresh and delicious.
In this pesto half of the basil is substituted for kale. While it helps to add in lots of vitamins – the taste really doesn’t change much at all. Seems like a great way for a non-kale lover to jump onto the kale bandwagon.
I decided to serve mine with some goya seasoned chicken and the two paired together perfectly. Add a glass of wine and you have yourself a very late spring time dinner. Perfect 🙂
Kale and Walnut Pesto
Ingredients
yields 4-6 servings of pesto
1 1/2 cups basil leaves
1 1/2 cup kale leaves
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Romano cheese
1/2 cup walnuts
1 t. red pepper flake
2 garlic cloves
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 t. each salt and pepper
16 oz of your favorite shape pasta
Directions
1) In a large food processor pulse the kale, basil, cheese, walnuts, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and pepper until finely ground, scraping down the bowl when necessarily.
2) With the food processor running slowly drizzle in the oil until all incorporated.
3) Prepare 16 oz of your favorite pasta according to the instructions on the package. Reserve 1/3 cup of the pasta water before draining.
4) Place the noodles back in the pot, stir in the pasta water and the pesto. Serve immediately.
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| Pasta with Spinach, Sausage, and Beans |
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| Shrimp Fra Diavolo |
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| Kale Chips |
Very nice recipe
I tried this recipe this week … devoured all the pasta, and proceeded to eat the pesto with a spatula! Amazing recipe!
Your kale pesto looks gorgeous. I just recently made my first kale pesto because of all the health benefits. I used soy nuts instead though. I definitely need to look into grapeseed oil.