The last couple Fridays, I’ve shared some grilling ideas and grilled pizza recipes. But this Friday, it’s all about
the light.
the tasty.
the refreshing.
And simple too. It’s a “boil the kale, boil the pasta, then toss with some lemon and Parmesan” kind of simple.
Serve like this…or with some fresh fruit…or with a side of grilled chicken slices. Whatever suits you!
And I hope y’all have a splendidly superb and delightful July 4th weekend!
Pasta with Kale, Lemon and Parmesan
Ingredients
- 10-12 kale leaves (free from the garden)
- 1 lb. small pasta noodles, fusili or small shells ($.50)
- 2 lemons, juiced and zested ($.50)
- 3 Tbsp olive oil ($.15)
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese ($.50)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Fresh fruit ($.50-$.75)
- Optional: Grilled, sliced chicken ($2)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to boil. Add 1 Tbsp salt and then add the kale leaves. Boil 2-3 minutes, or until the kale is soft and bright green. Drain in colander and rinse with cool water. Let sit for a few minutes before chopping. Then chop into bite size pieces.
- In a different saucepan (or the same one), boil the pasta noodles. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cool water if you are planning to serve this as a cold dish.
- Toss the cooked pasta with the chopped kale leaves. Then squeeze in the juice of 2 lemons, plus 1 tsp lemon zest. Add in the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Toss well.
- Add the Parmesan cheese and toss again.
- Serve as is...or with fresh fruit...or with sliced grilled chicken on top. Or mixed in. (whatever works for you, works for me!)
- Serve chilled or warm.
Tricia H says
You are so smart! I would have never thought of kale with this but what a wonderful taste combination. It does sound so light and refreshing.
analee says
i blogged about this recipe and of coarse linked back here to your original post! i made it to take to a family reunion – it was so hot out, this was perfect! it is a wonderful recipe! http://theoutcrop.blogspot.com/2011/07/lemon-pasta.html
Nishta says
Question about the kale–are you growing lacinato (dino) kale or the curly kind? I usually remove the stems from the latter, so I was curious about how it would work in this recipe.
Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom says
Hey Nishta, I’m using curly kale. And I’d definitely remove the stems! Hope this helps!
Erin
Alicia says
Oh yes, I tried this tonight and while I got a little too much lemon zest, it’s awesome!! Thanks for a great light recipe!