Pasta with Kale Flowers
Kale grows abundantly in my garden. I’m not a garden expert and some crops don’t seem to survive so well; but the kale and silver beet seem to thrive and flourish!
After a week away on holiday, we came home to our brassicas having gone to flower. Usually I’ll pop them in a vase on the table because they are pretty; however after googling whether kale flowers are edible, I decided to try adding them to the pasta dish I was making for dinner, anticipating that it may go in the compost and we might be having baked beans on toast for dinner. Haha.
Kale is a nutrition superstar containing 9 vitamins and 10 minerals, phytonutrients and antioxidants which is why it improves vision, skin, hair and bones. Part of the brassica family it helps fight cancer, and contains compounds to lower blood pressure, fight inflammation and aid detoxification.
Tips to use kale:
Young kale leaves taste better than older ones which may be tough and bitter.
Use quickly once they have gone to flower, otherwise kale leaves will get tough.
Cut before washing as this washes away some of the bitterness. Gently massage as you wash it to help remove bitterness.
Use kale in soups, salads, stir-fry, smoothies, finely chopped on pizza, or rub with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and bake to make kale chips.
This recipe serves 2 and got the tick of approval from the husband. In fact when I said I would put the remaining kale flowers in a vase, he replied he would happily have the same for tea again the next night. So they stored perfectly in the fridge in a plastic bag overnight and now I won’t be disappointed when my kale goes to flower, because we can have this delicious pasta meal.
Recipe:
30-50 g butter (Omit and just use olive oil to make it vegan)
Extra virgin olive oil
1 small - medium size brown onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
Pinch of chilli flakes
1 c kale flowers, chopped (or pull off stalk by running fingers along stalk from top to bottom)
small handful of small kale leaves, chopped first, then washed
2-3 stalks of silverbeet, chopped
1 small lemon
Spaghetti pasta for 2 (use gluten free pasta to make it gluten free)
Optional: grated parmesan cheese
Optional: pan fry 1 fillet of terekahi fish (or similar) in a little extra virgin olive oil and butter. Sprinkle a little Moroccan seasoning on top side of fish before flipping. Break into pieces and serve on top of pasta
Method:
Bring pot of water to boil for pasta. Add a little olive oil and salt, then add pasta and cook til al dente (tender to the bite but not mushy).
At the same time saute over a gentle heat, in butter and a little olive oil the onion, garlic, and chilli flakes for 2 minutes
Add kale flowers, kale and silver beet and cook until tender. Add more oil if drying out.
Squeeze in juice of lemon.
Taste and add salt and pepper if desired.
Drain pasta and add to kale mixture and stir through. Add more extra virgin olive oil if it is a little dry.
At this point the dish is vegan and delicious without parmesan; however if you are a fan of parmesan grate a little over top.
(If adding pan fried fish, break into pieces and serve over top.)
Sorry I didn’t take a photo of my kale before cutting off the flowering heads; (below is what it looks like after its “hair cut” ); but there will be some more kale recipes coming because it is so abundant!
