Cooking with kale

Kales and leafy greens…
 
Kales, and other dark leafy greens, including their bitter cousin 'Escarole', can be cooked with in a variety of ways. If you are using Cavalo Nero, or a kale with a tougher stem, you can cut the stem out and shred the leaves. If you are using chard, you can add the stem into your cooking, but add this before the leafy part as it takes a few extra minutes to cook down.
 

• Soups and stews, add your leafy greens to a soup or stew towards the end and let them cook down 
• Pastas, stir into a pasta sauce, for example with tomatoes, carrots and onions, towards the end
• Frittatas, fry off the greens with other vegetables, then bake or steam with some eggs into a frittata
• Salads, kale leaves can be enjoyed raw in salads. Massage them beforehand to break down bitterness
• Kale chips, this is great for tougher varieties of kale. Choop the kale up, sprinkle some salt and a bit of oil, then bake for 10 minutes or until crispy 

Recipes to try:

• Sausage, Kale and Barley Stew, this hearty recipe uses pearl barley, and will simmer away on the stove for an hour, filling the kitchen with the smell of warm stew
• Miso Roast Squash, with potato almonds and kale,the harissa and miso give this a real depth of flavour, and the crispy kale is a great compliment to the roasted squash
• Creamy Kale and Zingy Bean-y Bowl,ready in 25 minutes, this recipe is packed with protein and fibre, great for a healthy mid-week meal
• Squash, Kale and Stilton Pie,this pie can be a vegetarian main at Christmas or Sunday lunch - it is delicious and can be cooked the day before then reheated