For weeks now we have kale coming out of cour ears, I need new recipes! I’ve made kale soup, kale chips, kale mash, kale stir fries, kale stews and now also kale pesto! Yum, what a great addition and packed full of flavour and of course vitamins and fiber. Just make your fresh pesto as usual but also add raw shredded kale (for a lazier version buy store bough fresh kale and then blend the kale through in a food processor).
Make sure to really blend it well as raw kale is still a bit tough. It will wilt and soften a when adding the pesto to the hot ravioli and some added hot pasta water.
If you’re using the kale pesto just as is, so not in a sauce, then best to blanch the kale first. But that defeats the whole lazy part 😉
Lazy Ravioli with Kale Pesto
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Loading...Ingredients
- Pesto
- Big bunch fresh basil, stems removed if they are woody
- 1-2 whole kale leaves, hard stems removed and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts (hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts will work too)
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1-2 garlic cloves
- ± 1/3 cup olive oil (more if needed)
- ± 100 g grated parmesan
- Pepper & salt to taste
- Squeeze lemon juice to taste
- The pasta
- For this recipe I used store bought ravioli, filled with ricotta and mushrooms
Instructions
Blitz all the basil, kale, toasted pine-nuts, lemon zest, garlic and parmesan in a blender until finely chopped.
When coming together slowly start adding the olive oil until you reach the consistency you like.
Taste and season with pepper and salt and a small squeeze of lemon juice to start. Add more if needed
Boil the the fresh pasta in salty water, according to the packaging.
Drain the pasta but set aside ± 1/2 a cup of the pasta water, we will use this this to make the sauce nice and glossy. If using ravioli, transfer the it to a separate bowl for now (see notes).
Pour the fresh pesto into the pan with about 1/4 cup pasta water, turn on the heat and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the sauce heats through and thickens. Add more water for a saucier sauce.
Add the ravioli back to the pan and toss to coat.
Serve immediately with some fresh parmesan on the top. Buon appetito!
Notes
Because you need to stir the sauce vigorously it's better to remove the ravioli, otherwise they will tear open. If using regular pasta like penne or tagliatelle you can leave it in the pan while stirring.
