Kale Casarecce

Northern Pasta’s Casarecce are beautiful scrolls of pasta. The narrow grooves that run down the middle of each Casarecce piece are perfect for holding onto your sauce, while also giving you that al dente bite. Perfect for this really easy midweek recipe that also puts the first crop of kale from the Growing Well fields front and centre.

Ingredients

• 200g Growing Well kale
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 50g shallots
• 350g Northern Pasta casarecce
• 0.5 tsp chili flakes
• 60g parmesan
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Prep the veg: peel the garlic and peel and quarter the shallot. Strip the kale from its stems and tear the leaves in half.
2. Blanch the garlic and shallot for 3 minutes in a large pan of salted boiling water. Add the kale and cook for a further 3 minutes.
3. Using a slotted spoon, remove the kale, garlic, and shallot but keep the water to cook the casarecce.
4. Add the kale, garlic, and shallot to a blender with the oil and chilli flakes. Blend to the consistency of double cream. Add a little cooking water to loosen if needed. Season to taste.
5. Cook the pasta for a couple of minutes less than the package instructions. Drain when al dente but save a mug of the cooking water.
6. Put the drained pasta back in the pan, and add the sauce and as much of the saved cooking water as needed for your preferred consistency. Cook for a further 1 to 2 minutes.
7. Serve in warm bowls with a grating of parmesan and a sprinkle of chilli flakes.