Ingredients Needed

This recipe is not only easy to make it is also versatile, as the ingredients can be swapped out to use what you have on hand.

• Pasta: Rigatoni instead of orecchiette? No problem. You can use any type of noodle you have in your pantry for this recipe. Whole grain, regular, and even gluten-free pasta works!
• Greens: No kale? Use spinach or broccoli. Fresh kale or spinach is best, but you can use defrosted and drained frozen kale or spinach if that is all you have on hand.
• Chickpeas: The chickpeas add protein, texture, and heartiness, but you can certainly use cannellini beans or omit the beans altogether.
• Wine: To add a rich depth of flavor, I love using a bit of dried white wine like Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay. If you don't have wine on hand, use additional stock.
• Lemon Juice: Be sure to use FRESH lemon juice, as the acidity from the lemon juice helps the entire dish to pop. If you only have jarred lemon juice, skip adding the juice entirely, as the flavor is not the same.

How to Make Pasta with Kale

While the ingredients are interchangeable for this recipe, there are a few key steps that turn this pasta dinner into something spectacular that you don't want to skip.

The first trick is to cook the pasta correctly. You want to cook the pasta in rapidly boiling water that has been heavily salted. The pasta gets some of its flavors from the water, so it is essential to salt well. Cook the pasta, until just al dente--about 1 to 2 minutes LESS than the package states. The pasta will finish cooking with the kale and chickpeas, so you do not want it to be overcooked.

While the pasta is cooking, saute the kale. Kale is quite bitter and sturdy, so needs to be cooked down with seasonings to develop flavor. I saute the kale with dry white wine, vegetable broth, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper. The kale becomes tender and flavorful and delicious! Once the kale is wilted, add in garlic and beans and warm through before adding the pasta.

Add in pasta with pasta water. The trick to bringing this dish together is adding some of the cooking liquid from the pasta to the kale and bean mixture. The salty, starchy water adds tremendous flavor and adds moisture to this simple pasta dish. After adding the pasta and cooking liquid, cook just long enough to combine and heat through.

Finish with fresh lemon juice. To brighten all the flavors in this kale pasta, fresh lemon juice is key! It complements the dry white wine, and kale quite nicely as well.