Kale Sauce Pasta Recipe (2024)

It's not new. It doesn't need to be. Reminders are useful for many cooks, and newcomers to the kitchen may welcome the chance to try something so familiar and user-friendly.You know what's not useful? Snark.

You don't have to exclude the ribs of the kale, even for the the firmer variety: Just slice the ribs away from the leaves (you can do it a few stalks at a time), then bunch the ribs together and dice them finely. Then throw them in the boiling water 2-3 minutes before adding the leaves; it'll all cook pretty much the same, and should be indistinguishable once you put it through the processor. Sometimes the ribs make up half the weight of the kale, so it's definitely worth doing.

I have done this with arugala (when I can find it),or spinach, broccoli, greens (kale, mustard, collard) broccoli rabe.. adding a mashed-up avocado (with lime juice) for more deliciousness...mixing these with pasta or in a hot, freshly baked Idaho potato...(lubricating with butter, Melt, olive oil...)

Squeezed half a lemon into the kale puree. It definitely brightens up the flavor and brings out the garlic. Also used 5-6 cloves of garlic. Nom nom nom.

I blended silken tofu into the sauce for added protein; gave sauce a creamy Alfredo-like texture. My kids asked if we could eat this every night!

Wonderful to see you boiling the pasta in the kale water. Take it one step further and save the water in the freezer for adding to homemade soup. As well as nutrients from the kale, the bit of starch in the water gives the soup some thickness.

Made the sauce and used it as a filling for lasagna. Regular tomato sauce on bottom, noodle layer covered in a mixture of ricotta and beaten egg, then mozzarella, then tomato sauce. The subsequent two layers used the kale sauce in place of the tomato sauce, and the top layer used tomato sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan. Baked at 375 for 35 minutes. Delicious!

I made this as written, adding the juice from ~1/4 lemon. It was delicious!

I used nutritional yeast instead of cheese to make vegan and added pine nuts. Delicious!

I've found that the red Russian kale is much more tender than either Lacinato or the standard curly kale, but it may be difficult to find. It's also the easiest to grow. Young leaves can be used for salads like any lettuce. Massaging it vigorously by hand makes it even more tender. Seeds are cheap and very easy to find; just plant some in a pot of soil, water, and place on a sunny windowsill. You'll have lots of young kale leaves before spring arrives. It makes a pretty plant.

Made this twice. The second time, I added the kale stems first for 3-5 min, then added the leaves for 5. I didn’t want to waste the stems, and I honestly thought it was as good as the first time either leaves only.Followed everything else as written and added red pepper flakes at the end. Delicious way to use up leftover kale, although I would also buy kale for the purpose of making this sauce.

Always make the recipe as stated the 1st time, afterwards you can improvise to your hearts content!

I use broccoli rabe in place fo the kale, boiling it with a splash of olive oil added to the water. Whirling the drained rabe with garlic, blanched almonds and sharp pecorino cheese makes a creamy, assertive pesto. It is great tossed with whole-wheat pasta or gluten-free red lentil fusilli.

Yummy. Heated a couple of anchovies till semi dissolved then added cooked pasta etc. We try to eat some sort of protein each meal so for us needs an egg or two swirled in at the stage of mixing the sauce and pasta and Parmesan for protein - the heat from the pasta cooks it quickly and makes it extra creamy. I doubled the garlic. Will try the zest next time too! Thank you.

I've made this several times since published, and I just now discovered what it needs; heavy cream. The cream mutes the shocking green of the sauce, so it's not as off-putting to those who don't eat green stuff. In fact, this sauce is good enough to eat as is; without the pasta. It's absolutely delicious, but I've upped the garlic and the cayenne. I'm quickly using up the kale in the garden and might have to buy some. This is my new favorite way to eat kale.

Made this twice as written & found it good. BUT tonight swapped kale for spinach, and pasta for rice noodles, since that was in the pantry. For the sauce, added juice of half a lemon, red pepper flakes, and some walnuts. Grated feta into on the small holes of the box grater over the noodles. GAME CHANGER. Light & super creamy from the feta shreds, the rice noodles tender & plentiful like angel hair pasta. Will not go back to as-written because this pantry-inspired spin off was so much better!

I loved this, simple but hearty and healthy! I'd recommend adding the juice of ~1/2 lemon. Gave it a little brightness.

1/7/24 - added lemon juice and a block of soft tofu. It made way too much sauce but is tasty, healthy and satisfying. Would love to try with other grains/cannelini beans/chickpeas

The sauce is best mixed with a red sauce. The kale by itself is a pretty intense flavor.

add lemon :)

Made this with some of the suggestions (lemon, chilli flakes, using an egg yolk with the pasta you will eat to make it more substantial l). Delicious! Added some grilled chicken and it was perfect.

I used garlic and chili infused olive oil (I'm on a low FODMAP diet to the exclusion of garlic sugars) and it turned out amazing! I really liked the added subtle kick with the kale paste.

My companion Mark, made this several nights ago and I had some left-over, cooked-down mini peppers, and I added them to the left-over pasta and it was so delish. It had cheese in it already, so the flavors all together married well!!! Try it, you might like it!!

I don’t like garlic since I got pregnant so I sautéed an onion instead and added a squeeze of lemon at the end. So good and about the only way I can eat greens these days!

I thought the sauce was too flat tasting so I added nutritional yeast and made it taste like feet! Added some tomato paste which brought it back into food territory

I cannot believe how good this was! my 3 and 5 year old ate it too! I used 3 (big) cloves of garlic and added a squeeze of lemon into the blender after tasting the initial blend. Also followed other notes and included the rib which maybe balanced out the "green" taste (which it did NOT have). I coarsely chopped them after removing from the water since I was afraid of fishing out little pieces from the boiling pot... I am definitely using this again (and again)

Delicious! I used 1/4 cup nutritional yeast instead of parmesan to make it vegan. Also added red pepper flakes and extra garlic. Topped it with panko crumbs. Yum!

Love this-- I have another adaptation of this recipe to serve 4, as I find the measurements in the original a bit strange, and i love what peas bring to the sauce.1 bunch kale (usually about 1/2 lb)1 lb pasta4-6 cloves garlic1/2 c. - 3/4 c. Frozen peas (cook and blend with the kale).Same oil and cheese measurements as the original recipe.Serves 4-6Pop off, kings and queens

I added a little lemon zest and pan cooked cherry tomatoes in olive oil

Excellent pesto. I used half Kale and half basil and it was delicious.