Resolution: Eat More Kale! (And blog more regularly...)

Well, as you can probably infer from my lack of posts, December was an incredibly busy month for me. But fear not! I have quite the backlog of cooking experiments to write about over the next few weeks, and hope to get back into a regular routine with my posts.

Tonight's topic: Winter greens. At this time of year, it gets harder and harder to find fresh produce that is also eco-friendly (and not burning fossil fuels by being shipped from South America, etc.). Winter greens like kale, collard greens, and swiss chard love cold weather and will grow well into late fall and early spring in New England, and can be grown almost throughout the entire winter in cold frames by particularly determined farmers. You can find them almost year round at farmer's markets, and they are incredibly hardy and easy to grow yourself if you're so inclined (they are almost impossible to kill and will come back in the spring if you mulch them well over the winter). These greens are also some of the healthiest things on the planet that you can eat, and are full of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

Now, I used to HATE winter greens. Bitter is my least favorite taste, and often these greens can cook up slimy, mushy, and disgusting if cooked poorly (as is usually the case). But, given my newfound zeal for seasonal eating, I thought I'd give them another try. I recently tried a pasta recipe that called for collard greens or kale, and it turned out beautifully. The greens were well-seasoned, firm in texture, and complemented the other simple flavors in the dish really well. Trust Cook's Illustrated to get it right, as they so often do! So give kale a chance, and start eating better in the new year.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Greens, Beans, Bacon, and Bread Crumbs (modified from Cook's Illustrated)
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• Table salt
• 4 slices bacon (the original recipe calls for 3 oz pancetta if you have it on hand)
• 1 medium onion, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  
• 1-1 1/2 pounds kale or collard greens, thick stems removed and discarded, chopped into 1-inch pieces and rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 13 1/4 pounds whole wheat spaghetti (Ronzoni recommended)
• 4 ounces fontina cheese, grated (about 1 cup) [I used parmesan because I had it!]
• Ground black pepper

Directions

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch straight sided saute pan over medium-high heat. Add bread crumbs and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1 tablespoon garlic; cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant and bread crumbs are dark golden brown, about 1 minute. Season bread crumbs with salt, transfer to small serving bowl, and set aside. Wipe out pan with paper towels.

2. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in now-empty pan over medium-high heat, add bacon and cook until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towel lined plate and let cool. Crumble when cooled.
   

3. Add onion to pan; cook until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add remaining tablespoon garlic and red pepper flakes; cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4. Add half of greens to pan; using tongs, toss occasionally, until starting to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add remaining greens, broth, and 3/4 teaspoon salt; cover (pan will be very full); increase heat to high and bring to strong simmer. Reduce heat to medium and cook, covered, tossing occasionally, until greens are tender, about 15 minutes (mixture will be somewhat soupy). Stir in beans and crumbled bacon.

5. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven over high heat. Add spaghetti and 1 tablespoon salt; cook until pasta is just shy of al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot. Add greens mixture to pasta, set over medium-high heat, and toss to combine. Cook until pasta absorbs most of liquid, about 2 minutes. Add cheese; adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, topping with garlic bread crumbs.