Kale and Sausage Yumminess, Indeed!

You know you're in for a treat when you open your gmail and the first email's subject is simply "Kale and Sausage Yumminess". How can you resist opening an email like that?  Ms. K knows how much I love kale (and how much I love a good thrifty recipe) so she was quick to pass along a dish that was simple, delicious, and most importantly, came out to about $2 a serving. We luckily had two spicy sausages in the freezer (thanks Mom & Dad!) and had stopped by the farmer's market for some of the season's first bunches of kale, so we were all set for the meal.  As I'm sure you're now aware, I can't seem to stick to any recipe, even one that's already been tweaked by a home chef I respect, so I did a little work to this one as well adding the wine and the diced tomatoes.  I think I still need to perfect it - you can see from our finished product photos that the sauce was a bit runny - but the end result was still delightful.  Sam and I both had dinner, (Sam actually had 2 servings...) we've each had the dish for lunch, and there's still more leftover!  Don't worry, I predict it will be gone by the time I get home from work tomorrow.

Kale and Sausage Pasta

(Adapted from Ms. K's version of this)

Makes 4-6 servings

2 large spicy Italian sausages, removed of the casing

6 cups kale leaves, washed and chopped

½ cup dry red wine

4 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

3 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 cup chicken broth

28 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 cups short pasta like penne

1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese

In a large, heavy pot, break up and brown the sausage. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Add the red wine to deglaze the pot and scrape all of the sausage bits from the bottom of the pot.  Allow the wine to reduce by half then add in a tablespoon of oil and allow to heat up. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute. Heat but do not brown the garlic. Add the kale to the pan and cook until wilted, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Add the sausage, broth, and tomatoes to the pan and bring to a boil.  Once boiled, turn down the heat and allow the mixture to simmer for up to 45 minutes. Prepare and drain the pasta reserving about half a cup of pasta water. Add the pasta to the sauce (adding pasta water as needed). Mix in the cheese and serve warm. Enjoy the leftovers for the next few days – the dish gets better as it sits!

PS.  I apologize that our photos are not quite up to par.  We haven't quite figured out our lighting situation in the new kitchen and that overhead light is just atrocious!