Orecchiette with Sausage and Tuscan Kale Pesto

*I haven't actually made this yet.  Just saving it here for later.

Ingredients

• 3 cups (85 g) Tuscan kale, blanched*
• 1 cup (30 g) fresh basil
• 4 garlic cloves, whole
• 1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts
• 1/2 cup (45 g) Pecorino Romano cheese
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound (454 g) orecchiette pasta
• 4 sausage links, casings removed
• 4 tablespoons dry white wine like Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, or Chardonnay

Preparation

• Bring a pot of water to boil over high heat. Prepare another bowl full of ice for the ice bath.
• Cut off the tough stems from the Tuscan kale. And pick the basil leaves from the stems, discarding any that are damaged.
• When water is boiling, add the Tuscan kale and blanch for 15 seconds. Remove and plunge in the ice bath for 15 seconds and drain in a colander. Roughly chop the kale.
• Next, add the basil leaves in the boiling water for 5 seconds, until wilted. Scoop out and drain in a sieve. When cool enough to handle, squeeze dry and set aside.
• Cut each garlic clove in half and plunge in boiling water for 15 seconds, then transfer to the ice bath to cool.
• Put the kale, basil, nuts, garlic, cheese, and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor and purée until smooth.
• Transfer into containers for storage. Will keep well in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.
• To make pasta, bring a large pot of water to boil and season with salt. Add the orecchiete pasta and cook for about 8 to 11 minutes, or according to package directions.
• Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water. Drain the pasta.
• Wipe the same pot clean and heat on medium high. Add a little bit of olive oil to the pan.
• When oil is hot, add the sausages, crumble with a wooden spoon, and cook until browned all over.
• Add 2 scant cups of the pesto and stir. Immediately add 4 tablespoons of white wine and cook until the alcohol has evaporated, about 1 to 2 minutes. Then, add half the reserved cooking water (about 1/2 cup) to loosen the pesto. Stir well.
• Put the pasta back into the pot and toss until well-combined, adding more pasta water if needed.

So we copied Delfina Pizzeria...

Ingredients

Dough:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon yeast
• 2/3 cup water
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• pinch of kosher salt

Topping:

• 7 tomatoes
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• salt
• olive oil
• fresh basil
• Bocconcini (small mozzarella balls) cut in half

Instructions

Dough:

• Mix olive oil, water, and yeast for 5 minutes (stirring the whole time)
• Mix in flour, knead for 15 minutes on a floured surface
• Let rest 20 minutes in a bowl covered by a warm, damp cloth
• Sprinkle with salt and knead another 10 minutes
• Wrap in plastic wrap and let sit for at least 4 hours in a warmish room
• Spread out on floured surface into pizza shape
• Preheat oven and pizza pan to 500 degrees (or 550 if your oven can handle it)
• Cover with toppings and brush crust with olive oil.  Bake for about 15 minutes.

Sauce:

• Chop the tomatoes roughly and chop the garlic pretty finely
• Saute garlic in olive oil for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Add tomatoes and cook for at least 30 minutes.  Add salt and oregano to taste.  Add a little olive oil at the end.  The sauce should thicken up a little bit.
• Put sauce on pizza, dot pizza with cheese.  After cooking the pizza, top with sliced up basil.  Add a sprinkle of salt on top of the pizza and let it cool for 5 minutes.

Kale and Chickpeas (use as a side or on pasta!)

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch kale
• 1 red onion
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed
• red pepper flakes (optional)
• red wine vinegar

Instructions:

• Sautee the chopped red onions in some olive oil.  Add some red pepper flakes at this stage if you want them.
• Pour the chickpeas into the pan.  Add a splash of vinegar and some salt.  Cook for a minute or two.
• Now add the kale.  You may need to add some more vinegar or some other liquid to add some steam to wilt the kale.
• Cook for a few minutes.  Add more vinegar and salt to taste.
• Mix in with pasta or eat alone!

Lentil Tacos

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry lentils (maybe more, I usually guess)
• enough water to cover lentils in a pot
• 1 white onion, chopped
• spices: salt, pepper, chili pepper, coriander, cumin, oregano, paprika, garlic powder
• small corn tortillas
• cheese
• non-fat greek yogurt
• pico de gallo

Instructions

• Cook the lentils in the water according to the instructions that came with them.  When they get close to being soft, heat oil in a pan.
• Cook onions in the oil until soft.  When the lentils are ready, put them in the pan with the onions with a little bit of their cooking liquid.
• Stir in seasonings until it tastes like tacos.  It will take a lot of cumin.  A LOT.
• Serve on warm tortillas with pico de gallo and non-fat yogurt.  Cheese if you want.

Black Bean Burgers

This is actually a picture of my own food!  Hooray!

Ingredients:

• 1 can black beans, rinsed
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1 handful shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
• chopped cilantro
• 1/4 red onion, chopped real small
• spices to taste: cumin, coriander, chili powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper
• bun
• mayo
• tomato
• lettuce

Instructions

• Mix beans, cheese, cilantro, onion, and spices in a bowl.  Over season just a tiny bit (keep tasting!).  Add the egg and stir well.  Then add breadcrumbs until the mixture is firm enough to form into patties.  If you are brave enough to eat raw egg, taste the mixture again to check the seasoning.
• Heat oil in a pan, and fry the patties for at least 20 minutes.  They should get a little crispy on the outside.
• Broil the buns with a little bit of butter.  Serve with toppings and a margarita.

BONUS RECIPE - The Glenn Savage Margarita

Ingredients

• 1 shot tequila
• 1 shot triple sec
• 1 shot Key West lime juice
• 1 squeeze agave syrup
• ice

Instructions

• figure it out

Easy Tequila-Lime Chicken

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup tequila
• 1/2 lime juice (Key West brand. Anything else tastes like soap.)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 teaspoons oregano
• 2 skin-on chicken breasts
• 1 jalapeno

Instructions:

• Pour tequila, lime juice, oregano, and chopped garlic into a glass baking dish, one small enough to just fit the two chicken breasts
• Salt and pepper the chicken, place skin side up in pan.  Liquid should cover all the chicken except for the skin.  Place thin slices of jalapeno on top of the skin, and pour a little oil on top
• Bake for 30-40 min at 400 to 450.  Check for done-ness. Broil for the last few minutes until the skin is crispy
• Serve, pour extra sauce over rice.  Enjoy with a margarita!

This is the good stuff.

Kale Mac n Cheese

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound rotini or other short pasta
• half of a large bunch of kale
• 1 white onion
• garlic
• red pepper flakes
• paprika
• salt
• pepper
• butter
• breadcrumbs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup cheddar
• 1/2 cup parmesan
• 1/2 cup flour
• olive oil

Instructions

• Cook pasta in salted water.  Undercook it just a little bit.
• Meanwhile, saute diced onions in olive oil in a pot - not a pan.  Add red pepper flakes.  Add kale and garlic and a little water or chicken broth, and stir until kale is wilted.  Season with salt and pepper.
• Remove kale/onions from pot.  Add more olive oil. stir in flour and cook for a minute.  Add milk, then cheese.  Stir until melted and smooth.  Season with salt, pepper, paprika, and thyme.  Mix cheese mixture, pasta, and kale mixture in a shallow baking dish.  Put in oven at 375.
• Make breadcrumbs: sautee red pepper flakes in some butter.  Stir in breadcrumbs and other seasonings like garlic powder and salt.  Open oven and put breadcrumbs on top of macaroni.  Bake until breadcrumbs are brown and cheese is bubbly.
• Let cool for 5 minutes and then eaaaaaaat yummmmm.

Note: measurements are totally guesses.  Do what feels right.  Cheese is good.