Tuscan Kale Pesto Pasta, Cavolo Nero

This Tuscan Kale Pesto Pasta is made with garlic, Parmigiano, and topped with flaked almonds for crunch. It's packed with flavour, quick and easy to make, and suited to busy weeknights.

Recipe overview

• Flavour and texture: punchy kale pesto flavoured with garlic, Parmigiano Reggiano and a hint of nutmeg, topped with flaked almonds for crunch.
• Total time: 30 minutes or less
• Suited to: busy weeknights or when you're short on time

This kale pesto makes such a good alternative to classic basil pesto during the colder months. Made with cavolo nero (also known as lacinato or Tuscan kale), garlic, Parmigiano, pine nuts and a hint of nutmeg, it's garlicky and savoury and good tossed with pasta.

Without a doubt, pesto pasta is one of the quickest and easiest dinners you can make. It's our go-to when we're tired, and everyone's hungry, and it always hits the spot.

The best part is there are many variations of pesto, and they all work so well with pasta. Whether it's basil sun-dried tomatopeppery arugula or parsley pesto you can't go wrong.

For this kale pesto pasta, everything is blitzed into a thick pesto and then emulsified with pasta water to create a luscious and flavourful pasta sauce.

Ingredient notes

• Cavolo nero: also known as Tuscan kale or lacinato kale, it has a good earthy flavour. wash it thoroughly before using. If you love this ingredient, you'll also like our Garlicky Chickpeas and Cavolo Nero recipe.
• Pine nuts: these are the most common nuts added to pesto; their creamy consistency adds such a lovely texture and flavour. Other nuts work well too, such as cashews, walnuts or blanched almonds.
• Nutmeg: a hint of this adds a lovely warmth to the dish. We prefer to use whole nutmeg and grate it, but you can also use ground nutmeg instead.
• Parmigiano Reggiano: this adds so much flavour. Another good option is Pecorino Romano.
• Flaked almonds: these add a good crunch and texture to the pasta. You could use more pine nuts instead or roughly chopped hazelnuts.

Good ways to use kale pesto

Other than tossing kale pesto with pasta, you can use it to spread on sandwiches, drizzle over roasted or grilled vegetables or loosen it with a little olive oil and use it as a salad dressing.

It also works so well in a pasta salad. Prepare the recipe as written, then spread it out in a tray to cool. Once cool, add it to a bowl with your other desired ingredients such as mozzarella, tomatoes marinated peppers olives arugula. The list is endless.

Our top tips for making kale pesto pasta

• Use only 1 pot of water: We like to use 1 pot of water for everything. We use it to boil the cavolo nero, loosen the pesto, cook the pasta and then finally emulsify the whole dish. salt your water well and also wash your kale thoroughly before boiling.
• Emulsify your pesto: use enough water to help the food processor blitz the ingredients into a thick pesto, then when mixing the pesto with the pasta, use more pasta water to adjust the consistency of the sauce.
• Add lemon juice: if you'd like to add a little freshness to the pasta, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice is good.

Can we prep this in advance?

Yes, you can make the pesto and store it in the fridge for 1-2 days before using.

More recipes using pesto

Antipasti

Pea Pesto and Goats' Cheese Bruschetta

Pasta

Pasta With Green Beans, Tomatoes & Pesto

Mains

Chicken Pesto Ciabatta

Dips & Pestos

Pesto alla Trapanese (Sicilian Pesto)

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 450 g (1lb) Fusilli pasta (or other short shape)
• 300 g (10.5 oz) Cavolo Nero (Tuscan Kale) ((also known as lacinto kale))
• 30 g (1/2 cup) Parmigiano Reggiano (finely grated (plus extra for serving))
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon pine nuts
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• flaked almonds (for serving)
• salt and pepper

Equipment

• Straining spoon

Method

To make the kale pesto

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well.

2. Remove the stalks from the kale and roughly chop it. Add the kale to a colander and give it a good wash in cold running water.

3. When the water is boiling, add the kale and boil for around 8 minutes,until cooked through. Remove the kale with a strainer spoon or kitchen tongs into a colander and rinse under cold water. (Keep the water boiling for cooking the pasta)

4. Squeeze out all the excess water and add the kale to a food processor. Add the Parmigiano, pine nuts, garlic clove, nutmeg, olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.

5. Blitz to a thick paste. We add around 1/4 cup (60ml) of boiling water to help smooth it out. Taste the pesto for seasoning and add salt if needed.

To make the kale pesto pasta

1. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente.

2. Transfer the pesto to a large mixing bowl. Add the cooked pasta and 1/2 cup (120ml) of reserved pasta water. Toss the pasta until thoroughly coated in the pesto.

3. Serve in bowls topped with more Parmigiano and flaked almonds.

Kitchen notes

• Wash the kale thoroughly: roughly chop the kale then wash it thoroughly in cold running water before boiling.
• Salt the water well: salt the water generously to flavour both the kale and pasta when cooking.
• Reserve your pasta water: We recommend using a straining spoon instead of draining your pasta, and use some of the reserved pasta water to emulsify your pasta sauce.
• Storage: leftovers will keep well in the fridge for up to 2 days. Leftovers are best eaten cold as a pasta salad.