Chris Makes Kale Pesto Pasta

You know.

It convinced me that after you make a recipe

you're not gonna feel like malnourished and hungry,

you're actually gonna feel satisfied.

Andy, two years ago Andy kind of wanted you to be

a little bit hungry.

Just like.

It's charred, charred cabbage with cod,

you know and like grapefruit.

Yeah.

Yeah, not even a grain of rice in sight.

I'm feeling nourished and hopefully healthy.

Definitely healthy. [upbeat music]

So the Feel Good Food Plan is our kind of answer

to the question of how can we eat the way we wanna feel

in 2020 and like beyond?

You know Andy and I came up with 10 recipes.

We're not counting calories, we're not being dogmatic

about what is or isn't healthy.

Just 10 easy recipes that you know are highly achievable

on a weeknight that you can you know

feel great about eating.

I am, what's up?

I know what this is. Yeah, you know what this is.

Do you know what this is?

They'll know.

[Tommy] We're about to find out.

Yeah. Yeah.

Oh here we go.

What did you say about the Feel Good Food Plan?

How'd you describe it?

I described it's a tradition of collaboration

between myself and you for the last three years.

Yeah.

And this year it's going in our print issue.

Oh yeah, that is cool.

And yeah, it's 10 incredible recipes you're gonna

wanna make.

10? 10.

Plus dessert. Plus dessert.

This is a great one. Yeah.

I'm make kale and pistachio pasta with,

using farro pasta.

This is our farro spaghetti.

So it's, think of it like a whole wheat pasta,

but it's not quite as gnarly as whole wheat pasta can get,

where you get crazy earthy nutty flavor that's just

like very, it's start to be in competition with whatever

you serve it with.

Farro pasta, you know it just has like great flavor,

great texture, but you can feel slightly virtuous

eating it if that makes sense.

Blender parm is when instead of sitting here

and scraping all my knuckles at the end of a very long day

trying to grate a whole bunch of parm for you guys,

and no I don't wanna use a microplane.

I don't really believe in using a microplane

for Parmesan cheese.

So blender parm. [chatter]

So you cut parm, it should be, you know firm,

like as in like cold from the fridge.

It'll just help it kind of get chopped up nice and evenly.

Oh, I use blender parm,

I guess it was a reverse engineering,

a different crew.

So it's okay that you guys don't remember.

I was a little bit offended.

[chatter]

[blender rumbling]

Blender parm.

So what I like about blender parm is that you get

these wonderful kind of texture.

It's like the texture you get when you go to

an Italian restaurant and you have that like

sprinkly cheese on the table.

Like pleasantly clumpy.

Dense but, and yet weirdly aerated.

Does that makes sense, it probably doesn't at all.

You can microplane that same amount of Parmesan cheese

and you will have a punch bowl like this.

And then it's just gonna get kind of clumpy

and matted down.

Whereas this, it's gonna incorporate into our pesto

really really easily.

But it's also dense enough that it's gonna put

a meaningful amount in there.

So I don't even need to wash this out.

'Cause we're gonna be doing our pesto in there.

So, here's the thing about kale.

Like raw kale, it got big for a while.

But this is a way of using a fair amount of kale

and eating a lot of kale in a way that's like

honestly like immensely pleasurable.

'Cause you're eating it on pasta right?

So, you don't have to, basically anything can be a pesto.

So you could have any number of hearty greens,

you could have like collards, a little bit of Swiss charred,

you could have alternate herbs.

Not necessarily basil.

But the kale that we're gonna use in the,

in the pesto today I'm gonna blanch just briefly

in the pasta cooking water.

That's gonna soften it, it's gonna make it turn

bright green, and it's gonna allow it to wilt just enough

so that I can kind of squeeze it out,

squeeze out that excess water.

And it's gonna incorporate really nicely into the pesto.

So that way you don't just have that kind of squeaky

raw kale sensation when you eat it.

You're gonna get a little bit more kind of supple,

a little bit more of like the cooked notes of kale,

but without having to like actually cook it.

Alright so I'm just de-stemming.

So we're gonna take this to the stove.

So I'm making the pesto before we cook the pasta.

Alright?

[pots clanking]

Needs salt.

So I want the, obviously I want the water for the pasta

to be salted just so that it gets seasoned all the

way through.

I also want salt on the kale.

I mean look, it's not essential,

like, you know it's the, it's the sudden temperature change

that's gonna set the chlorophyll in the kale leaves.

I'm just gonna leave them in just for a few seconds,

until they're kind of wilted.

And then I'm gonna get them out.

Think like 30 seconds max.

And this is like fairly tender kale.

So it's also gonna help season the kale

and like get some seasoning on the kale right

from the beginning.

Just a quick dip, you see the color change,

how fast that happens.

So it's, it's only really partly cooking the kale

but it just means it's gonna,

it's gonna be that much more tender when we go

to puree it.

I'm gonna keep the water going for the pasta,

come back to it in a sec,

as soon as our pesto is done. [chatter]

So I'm just wringing out some of that excess water.

You might need to wait a minute until it cools down.

And I'm not gonna have this be the first thing

that I blend.

So, so in the blender, first thing,

we're gonna add our garlic. [chatter]

Only the roughest of chops in there.

Then I'm gonna do a third of a cup of pistachios.

Raw pistachios are fine.

What's great about pistachios in this,

obviously everybody knows like you know pine nuts

are kind of like almost synonymous with pesto,

at least for some people.

Pistachio is also like a very soft nut.

Kind of like a pine nut is.

So it blends and gets super creamy really easily.

So that way you don't actually have to put that much

butter and oil into this pesto to counterbalance

that really assertive sort of green vegetal flavor

of the kale.

The pistachio kind of disappears in there,

you taste it a little bit.

But it adds a richness, it adds fat,

and it helps you balance out all that kale.

So olive oil.

And then water.

[Man] Yes.

Third of a cup. [chatter]

[blender rumbling]

So the reason why we wait to put the kale in

is just that it just keeps it out of the way

so that we can really break down those pistachios

so they stay really creamy in the pesto.

So putting a third of a cup of this Parmesan in.

Now one thing to be aware of.

If you are a die hard Parmesan microplaner,

I know you're out there,

you're gonna need literally four times this volume of parm.

So go by the ounce amount,

this is one ounce of Parmesan going in there.

And then our kale is gonna go in there as well.

We're adding a controlled amount of water to this just

to get it to puree nicely.

So I wanna make sure the bulk of the water is out of

the kale just because that is sort of

an unpredictable amount. [chatter]

So you wanna just kind of eliminate it as a variable.

[blender rumbling]

So, it helps to have a very powerful blender.

But you don't need a great blender to do this.

You could do this in a food processor,

and it'll be perfectly fine.

Already tasting really good.

I'm gonna season this up with a little bit of salt.

But point being whatever method you're using

whether it's the blender or food processor feel free to add

another splash or two of water to get it to loosen enough

to puree effectively.

So like right now this is where we're at.

Okay, it's not bad.

It's smooth-ish.

But I think we can do a little bit better.

So, to that end we're gonna put in

just a splash more water.

See if we can work it around a little bit more.

[chatter]

[blender rumbling]

Okay, let's see where we're at here.

So I already, see how much creamier that got?

Even a little bit more kind of,

evenly green, a little bit smoother.

So it's stiff, we're gonna loosen it further okay

with additional pasta cooking water.

But at least it's starting off in a place

where to what extent is it emulsified,

to what extent is it pureed?

Why is any of us here?

I don't know.

We're gonna cook the pasta. [bag crinkling]

Just keep rolling.

No, it's okay.

It's gonna take us a minute to cook the pasta anyway.

[tongs clanking]

[Tommy] Just have to keep the video going

while it's cooking then?

Oh my god, no, alright camera cuts, camera cuts.

[laughing]

I don't have it today.

Today is not the day.

Alright so we're cooking pasta.

So let's check back in a few minutes alright?

[tongs clanking]

Alright, cool, so we're good here.

Ooh, that's hot.

So I'm not like freaking out if there's a little bit of

water clinging to this pasta.

We are gonna be adding at least a third of a cup water,

pasta cooking liquid to the, to this dish just to get

everything to incorporate nicely.

The main thing is like you don't want to use so much water

in the pureeing of your pesto,

and then add so much water here that you loosen

the pesto like too much.

That would just suck.

'Cause then you're gonna dilute your flavors.

You're gonna have like very saucy soup-y pesto

and nobody wants that. [blender tapping]

So what I like about kale pesto is that I didn't have to

sit here and pick an entire case of basil to do it right?

Kale leaves you know, picking you know,

the stems from one large bunch of lacinato kale

takes you maybe a minute.

Maybe 30 seconds, I don't know.

We didn't have a timer going.

But it's not a lot of time.

Whereas kale you know,

there's a lot of kale in the world.

It's so green, I love that.

So, when you were like we're gonna get you a glass of water

I was like I've got water right here,

don't worry about it Tommy.

[Tommy] You're gonna need,

you're gonna drink salted pasta water?

It is liquid gold.

Liquid gold man.

Alright, I'm gonna add even a touch more water.

So, it's better to keep adding then to be in a situation

where you wish you could take away.

That's, that's all I'm gonna say okay?

It tightens you know as the pasta continues to absorb

a little bit of water. [chatter]

Alright this is perfect.

Thanks for the heads up on the butter.

It was just like sitting there calling out to you.

Where, so it's not too late. [pasta sloshing]

I mean, it's nice with pasta to get a little bit of height

on the plate.

I'm honestly just sitting here thinking like maybe

I'm gonna add a little bit more water just to get

a little bit more you know drapey,

drapey zhush to the sauce.

Uh oh, tower, tower down.

Get over there.

Yeah I'm just gonna add like you know,

I just want Carla to be really impressed.

[Tommy] There we go, look at that.

Okay Carla, we're ready.

You're ready.

Am I ready, I feel like I've been preparing my whole life

for this moment.

Well I introduced you as the maker of white pesto.

True.

You know, so. I did make it.

This is you know green one. This is a green one.

Is this?

Do you wanna lobster bib or like an apron?

I already schmutzed up my thing.

Perfect, so the pesto will fit right in.

Wait, this is BA's best or not BA's best?

No, so this our kale and pistachio pesto for

Feel Good Food Plan. Yes.

With the farrow pasta. Wonderful.

Yeah. Love farro.

Yeah, hold on.

I'm gonna give you the hot one.

Cool.

Do I have to?

Okay thanks. There you go, it's cool.

I've thought of everything.

It's a really stunning green.

Thank you, and just so you know this green is so stunning

that after you eat it it may be on your teeth

for the next five to 10 days.

But is it one of those things like with beets?

Is it like that? Oh no, it's not that bad.

You know what I'm talking about.

[chatter]

And it's, I just feel healthy.

Totally. You know what I mean?

It's farro, it's kale. It's farro, it's kale.

Nuts, it's good fats.

What better way to eat a bunch of kale than this?

I mean there is no better way.

Right?

I've eaten kale lots of ways,

this is definitely the best.

And if I told you there was some basil in there

I feel like you'd, you might be like oh,

like sure. Yeah, sure, I'd buy that.

It's sort of like. Is there none?

No, it's just kale. None.

Right, what else is there to say?

Um, delicious.

I just ate from the edge. Okay.

So I don't know if more people need to.

I don't know.

I came in from the side. Whoever knows.

You know. Alright.

Healthy as an ox. [laughing]

Delicious. Alright.

Kale. Cool.

Does a body good.

Alright, thanks Carla. [chatter]

I feel so healthy now. Yeah, good pesto?

Do you wanna try some?

Oh, fine.

Just careful with your shirt.

I'm a little bit worried about your shirt.

I'm just making you a little tasty taste.

Okay?

Yes, yes.

Now you're thinking.

I love the color.

I love the color.

The color, the consistency.

It just clings onto the noodles.

Yes.

It's, it's a clinger.

This is generously sauced. Yes.

You know I feel like.

I appreciate how there's just a touch of garlic.

Yes.

Thanks Chris.

Thanks buddy.

Cool.

Look, I think the point here is that there's no reason

why you should still be making pesto from basil in January.

You know kale is out there, it's available,

you know you can afford to use a lot of it,

as much as you want.

As far as I'm concerned there is no more delicious way

to eat an entire bunch of it than thrown together

with some pistachios, Parmesan, salt,

and to Andy's point just enough garlic.

And brought together.

Feel Good Food Plan 2020.

Make it. [chatter]

[Tommy] Yes.

[chatter]

I'm not gonna show you my teeth because my producers

inform me that they are quite green right now.

[dishes clanking]