Kale Pasta with Lemon and Garlic Butter

A bold kale pasta recipe with garlic, butter, lemon, and chile flakes. Silky, glossy, and packed with enough greens to actually taste them.

Why I love it

This might seem like an absurd amount of kale for a single recipe, but bear with me. And please don’t change it. Greens cook down so dramatically, and if you actually want to taste the kale in your kale pasta, this is the perfect amount.

There are few things more disappointing than a recipe that promises vegetables and leaves you wishing they’d doubled them. I really love leafy greens when they’re cooked simply, especially sautéed in olive oil with garlic until silky and tender. That’s the foundation of this pasta.

I fold kale into a light, glossy butter sauce and finish it with fresh lemon and plenty of red chile flakes. It’s simple, but not flat. The creamy butter and starchy pasta water emulsify into a silky sauce that clings to the noodles and coats the kale instead of pooling at the bottom. The lemon sharpens everything just enough, and the kale stays front and center.

Honestly, this reminds me of a kale scampi, if such a thing existed.

It’s fast enough for a weeknight, but it still feels special. I’ll often keep it as-is when I want something light and satisfying, or bulk it up with chopped chicken or white beans if we need something more filling. On nights when I’m feeling ambitious, I’ll serve it with giant meatballs on the side, which turns it into a real sit-down dinner.

If you’re feeling especially fancy, this pasta is excellent with homemade linguine. I’ve tested it with a few doughs, but I keep coming back to my egg yolk pasta dough for this one. The richness and tenderness plays beautifully with the lemon and kale.

And if what you’re really after is a more sauce-forward kale pasta, my kale pesto is a great alternative tossed with your favorite shape. Enjoy!

How to make it

Recipe tips

• Grate the garlic. Finely grated garlic melts into the sauce and flavors everything without leaving any strong bits behind.
• Blanch the kale first. A quick blanch softens the leaves and locks in their color. Squeeze it very dry before sautéing so it can soak up the garlicky oil.
• Save the pasta water. Scoop it straight from the pot into the skillet, and simmer and swirl it with the butter. This is the key to building a light, glossy sauce that emulsifies and coats every strand of pasta.
• Timing matters. This is a simple pasta, so have everything ready before you start (chopping is the most time consuming!) and finish it while it’s hot and glossy.
  

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