Pasta with Garlicky Parmesan Kale

Today was a crazy day. Started out as a dreary, cloudy day. Then it started raining, and I figured it was like any other other rainy day. Then, while I’m on a zoom conference call (the new norm by the way), all our phones sound the alarm – tornado warning! The sky gets dark, the wind starts blowing and then the hail starts. Of course, this is the exact time that my mom has decided to drive up here to drop off some groceries, so I am instantly worried. She gets here, drops everything on the doorstep, gets back in the car and leaves to head back home, where she arrives safely. Then within minutes, the rain and hail stops, the clouds part and the sun has been shining ever since. Here comes the cheesy part of the post – I am thinking of today like a metaphor for life right now. Things got a little gray with COVID-19 at first, then it got dark and the hail started (that’s the part we are in now). But eventually, soon we all hope, the clouds will part, the sun will shine, and we will have gotten through this crazy uncertain time. Until then, we continue of with our families, hoping everyone stays safe and healthy.

OK, first cheesy part over. Now onto the second cheesy part of this post – Pasta with Garlicky Parmesan Kale. When my husband went to the farmers market this weekend, along with enough chicken and sausage to last a month, he brought home freshly made pasta and the largest bunch of kale I have ever seen. I don’t want those beautiful ingredients to go waste, so I know we only have a few days to use them. A simple but delicious pasta with fresh ingredients is exactly what this calls for.

Start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large high sided pan, add the olive oil, butter, red pepper flakes and garlic to the pan and heat them over medium heat. While the butter is melting and the oil is heating up, the flavors of the red pepper and the garlic are going to infuse into the butter and oil, flavoring the whole dish.

While the butter and oil are melting, pull the kale off the thick stems and tear into pieces.

Once the butter and oil are heated and you can smell the garlic (one of the best smells in the world, am I right?), add in the lemon zest, kale, salt and pepper. Toss to coat in the garlic oil. Allow to cook for 5 minutes while the kale begins to soften and wilt. While the kale is cooking, I add the pasta to the boiling water. NOTE: I am using fresh pasta so it only cooks for a minute or two. If you use dried pasta, add into the water at the beginning of the cooking so that it can cook to al dente.

When the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of pasta water in a cup to the side and add the pasta directly into the pan with the kale.

Turn off the heat and add in the parmesan cheese, lemon juice and pasta water. Mix together well. The butter/oil, cheese and pasta water will come together to create a light and cheesy sauce to coat the pasta.

You can serve the pasta as is, or you can add one decadent addition – an over easy egg right on top. Cook 2 eggs over easy in another pan, making sure the yolk stays nice and runny. Place one egg on each plate on top of the pasta and sprinkle with a little more parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. If you are like me, you like runny egg on just about everything, but having it be part of a pasta sauce is certainly one of my favorites.