Kale Pesto

Last night the kids were planting trees with their Scout troops so I needed to whip up something quick and filling. I have been keeping my fridge pretty lean and mean and trying to use up what I have in my pantry, lately...so I grabbed this recipe from Homemakers Magazine, a bunch of kale, some of my Cooper's garlic that I have roasted and put in a mason jar with olive oil, and an onion. Although India refused to even taste it (probably because it was green...) Devon, Greg and I loved this recipe...3 out of 4 isn't bad!

KALE PESTO

Ingredients:

1 bunch (approx. 1 lb) of kale

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

6 cloves garlic

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup EVOO

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/3 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano cheese

• Grasping the stem of the kale between your thumb and forefinger, strip the kale leaves off the stems. Place the kale, garlic, onion and 1/2 tsp salt in a large lidded saucepan, and fill with 3 cups water. Bring water to a boil; cover and cook over medium heat until the kale is tender (approx. 15 minutes).


• Reserving the cooking water, place the vegetables and 3/4 cup of the cooking liquid in a food processor. Pulse until minced but not smooth.


• Remove the pesto and mix with the EVOO, black pepper, remaining salt and Parmesan Reggiano cheese.


• Stir in to your favourite cooked pasta and serve with some freshly ground cheese and pepper on top!


• ENJOY!

If you add this to 1 lb of cooked pasta, it will serve 6. It also will include 24% of the recommended daily intake of iron, 68% of vitamin A, 88% of vitamin C, 16% of calcium and 15% folate!!!! Yummy AND great for you!!

Fettuccine with Arugula, Walnuts & Lemon

I had a container of organic arugula and spinach that needed to be used, so I whipped up this tasty and light dish for dinner!!

FETTUCCINE WITH ARUGULA, WALNUTS & LEMON

Ingredients:

8 oz fettuccine

1/3 cup EVOO

1 garlic clove, chopped

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

3 cups of fresh baby arugula and/or spinach, washed and drained

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock

4 tbsp of chopped walnuts

1 tbsp unsalted butter

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano cheese

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine until it is al dente.
• Meanwhile, while the pasta is cooking, heat the EVOO in a large saute pan and gently cook the garlic, over medium-high heat, until it turns golden brown. Add 3 pinches of Kosher salt, approximately the same amount of pepper, and 2 pinches of the crushed red pepper to the oil.
• Add the arugula leaves and stir until slightly wilted. Add the stock, bring to a boil and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the walnuts and cook for an additional minute, or until the stock has reduced by half.
• Add the lemon juice and butter and stir to incorporate. Turn off the heat
• Drop the fettuccine into the saute pan with the sauce and mix to incorporate the ingredients. Top with the Parmesan Reggiano and serve!

The pasta will appear slightly creamy, but shouldn't be swimming in the sauce.

Chicken with Apricots, Olives and Capers!!

Last week I had my Aunt, Uncle and second cousins visit from the UK. As I haven't seen them in 13 years, I wanted to create a meal that I didn't need to tend to, so that I could have a proper visit with them...this meal definitely fits the bill! It's full of flavour, economical for larger groups, and so easy to prepare you'll undoubtedly add it to your weekly repetoire!!

CHICKEN WITH APRICOTS, OLIVES AND CAPERS

Ingredients:

3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1/4 cup minced garlic

1/4 cup chicken broth (homemade is best, but low sodium is fine too)

1 tbsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tbsp olives

2 tbsp capers with some of the brine they're packed in

3 bay leaves

3 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup dried apricots

• In a large freezer bag, combine the first 9 ingredients. Ensure all ingredients are well combined and the chicken fully coated in the marinade. Seal and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.


• Heat oven to 350F and arrange all ingredients from freezer bag into a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with the brown sugar and pour wine around chicken pieces.


• Bake uncovered for one hour, basting often to ensure chicken doesn't dry out.


• After cooking, remove bay leaves and serve!

In order to allow your family or guests to decide how much they want, I like to remove the chicken breasts from the cooking liquid, slice into 1/4" thick slices and then plate with the olives and apricots and a some of the liquid drizzled over top!

Also, I serve this dish with either my couscous recipe (June 2009 ) or the Greek lemon roasted potatoes ( May 2009) as both are fantastic side dishes to this meal and equally as easy to prepare!

APOLOGIES!!!

I have to apologize for being away from my blog for so long! After my last post we left for a family vacation to the Mayan Riviera for a couple of weeks and since I have returned, it has been non-stop over at Cooper's CSA Farm & Maze!? With the spring comes home shows, adverts in papers, website updates, newsletters, and planning the annual Open House....so I really haven't done much cooking, and what I have been cooking has already been posted!

I promise to get some new springtime recipes on my blog this week!!!