Pasta Adapted

I seem to be having a lucky run with simple pasta sauces. Somehow, these days, a plate of pasta and a tasty bit of sauce is often just what I want. It is a good sort of meal for a person who often eats alone. Even when I don't have company, I generally eat my supper at the dining room table, having set it properly, because the food tastes better to me that way. And I eat breakfast and lunch at a long table in our nice lunch room at work, with the same 3 other people, most of the time. But everyonce in a while, I want a bowl of food that can travel to the sofa with only a bowl and fork,spoon,or chopsticks to curl up and watch the most recent Netflix arrival. This kind of pasta dish fills that bill.

Earlier this week, my friend Ilene served me an very tasty pasta and veg combination containing two of my favorites-kale and fennel. Her recipe came from a little book on pastas from the Cook's Illustrated people. I looked at the book, but didn't jot it down. As I had some fennel- and farmbox kale this week, I didn't want to wait. So, I reconstructed it from memory, hoping I wasn't leaving out anything important.

Ilene made it with whole wheat pasta, and it was a very good combination, but I didn't have any, so I went with ordinary pasta. All the while I made it, I was trying to remember who it was who said that pasta recipes are "not as forgiving as one might think." Anyway, regardless of who said it, this is quite true, especially with the lovely simple sauces, where the balance of the ingredients is often everything. So I hoped for the best.

This is what I did:

Serves 3-4

Fennel bulb sliced thinly-stalks saved for stock, fronds chopped and reserved
one onion. in thin half moons
bunch of kale, parboiled, stems removed
olive oil
salt
pepper
wee bit red pepper flakes
cup of water or chicken broth
balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup parmesan, finely grated
1 pound spaghetti, boiled al dente while making sauce, so it is all done at the same time

Cook fennel and onion in the olive oil slowly, until tender and beginning to brown. Add kale and cook about 5 minutes, sprinkling with salt, pepper and pepper flakes. Add cup of the hot pasta water or chicken broth, the balsamic vinegar to taste, and stir in the cheese. Drain pasta, add to sauce and mix. Sprinkle with fennel fronds, and serve, with additional cheese if you wish, and extra grind pepper.

I am not usually a fan of that guy with the bow tie. The Cook's Illustrated approach to the "perfect" recipe can seem simultaneously clueless and smug , and the in-house obsession with rule-making does not often produce inspired food, at least to the limited extent I've tried it at home. But this one is a winner. Toothsome, savory, subtly sweet and sour, and easy to make. Looks like I remembered enough of the recipe to make it work.

Comments

[steven]

Feh to rules! The only time you need to be rigid with cooking is when you're baking and even that has some wiggle room. The pasta is so simple and the ingredients are great, how could it be anything other than fantastic?

[Baking Soda]

Fennel is one of my favourite flavour-adders (if that is a word) and I do like simple pasta sauces, I agree that they can be quite deceiving, I once had a pasta served in Italy all it seem to have was just great tomatoes and great olive oil, pepper and salt...Match made in heaven.
I have to get used to the use of kale like this. Kale in Holland (= boerenkool) is used in a hotchpotch (mashed with potatoes and served with smoked sausage) and for us it is a typical winter comfort food.

[Rebecca]

What a great flavor combination! This is a lot like what I made earlier in the week, but with some extra flavors; I like the idea of the vinegar.

[Julie]

I think that sitting on the couch and eating a bowl of pasta while you watch a good movie or television show is one of life's great pleasures and comforts. If it's a rainy night or afternoon, even better.

Your pasta dish sounds delicious.