Spring is here! It switched on like a light bulb about a week ago in Kansas City. The daffodils are on their way up, the birds are chirping, and Cookie and I are thrilled. I’m literally humming, “The hills are alive,” on our walks around the neighborhood.

Today, I wanted to share a shockingly green pasta dish with you. It’s easy to make, nourishing and comforting, which is exactly what we need right now. I wouldn’t blame you if you find the color off-putting, but I promise it’s so tasty!
The cool thing about this dish is that we use the same pot of water to cook the kale (including the kale stems), pasta and peas. You’ll need to set a few timers. It’s not complicated, but maybe wait to pour another glass of wine until you’re sitting down to eat.

Once it all comes together, this dish almost tastes like deconstructed ravioli. It’s bright green and punctuated with tender peas and creamy ricotta. Make some for dinner tonight?

Meanwhile, warm the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until the garlic begins to sizzle, then reduce the heat to low. Cook gently, lightly shimmying the pan and turning the garlic every now and then, until the garlic is soften and turning lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and pour the contents into a stand blender.
Add the cooked kale stems to the blender when the time’s up. Use tongs to transfer the kale leaves over to the blender (you actually want to bring some of the water with them). Add most of the zest from the lemon, and 1 tablespoon of the juice. Add ¼ teaspoon salt, the red pepper flakes (if using), plus about 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper.
Blend until the mixture is completely smooth and silky, adding more spoonfuls of water if necessary to gain traction. Taste, and add more salt, pepper or pepper flakes, and/or another tablespoon of lemon if desired. We want it to taste lemony! Set aside.

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente according to the package directions, stirring often. Place the peas in the sieve and cook them in the water until they’re warmed throughout, about 1 to 2 minutes if fresh, or 2 to 3 minutes if frozen. Set the peas aside.
Before draining the pasta, scoop out about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water with a heat-safe measuring cup. Drain the pasta, then return it to the pot. Pour in the green sauce, about ¾ of the Parmesan and the peas, and add a small splash of the reserved cooking water (not the end of the world if you forgot it). Stir gently until the pasta is well coated and bright green, adding another splash or two of pasta water to loosen the sauce and make it almost creamy.
Divide into bowls immediately. Top each with a sprinkle of the remaining Parmesan, a few dollops of ricotta, and a sprinkle of lemon zest and red pepper flakes (both optional). Finish the bowls with a light drizzle of olive oil. Enjoy! Leftovers will keep for up to 2 days in the refrigerator, covered (technically, they’ll last up to 4, but the flavor degrades as time goes on).

Spring is here! It switched on like a light bulb about a week ago in Kansas City. The daffodils are on their way up, the birds are chirping, and Cookie and I are thrilled. I’m literally humming, “The hills are alive,” on our walks around the neighborhood.

Today, I wanted to share a shockingly green pasta dish with you. It’s easy to make, nourishing and comforting, which is exactly what we need right now. I wouldn’t blame you if you find the color off-putting, but I promise it’s so tasty!
The cool thing about this dish is that we use the same pot of water to cook the kale (including the kale stems), pasta and peas. You’ll need to set a few timers. It’s not complicated, but maybe wait to pour another glass of wine until you’re sitting down to eat.

Once it all comes together, this dish almost tastes like deconstructed ravioli. It’s bright green and punctuated with tender peas and creamy ricotta. Make some for dinner tonight?

This lemony green pasta recipe tastes as bright as it looks! It’s easy to make with kale, pasta, and peas—they all cook in the same pot. Serve this pasta immediately for the best color and texture; leftovers are best consumed within a day or two. Recipe yields 4 servings.
This lemony green pasta recipe tastes as bright as it looks! It’s easy to make with kale, pasta, and peas—they all cook in the same pot. Serve this pasta immediately for the best color and texture; leftovers are best consumed within a day or two. Recipe yields 4 servings.

Bring a large pot (5-quart capacity or greater) of heavily salted water to boil. Meanwhile, prepare your kale by slicing or stripping the leaves from the stems (save them). Discard the rough bottom of the stems, then slice the stems into pieces about ¼-inch wide. Place the stem pieces in a fine-mesh sieve.
When the water is boiling, place the sieve in the water, resting the lip against the top of the pot. Cook the stems for 3 minutes, then remove the sieve and add all of the kale leaves to the pot. Put the sieve back in the water on top of the leaves and cook for 5 minutes (do not drain the water).

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente according to the package directions, stirring often. Place the peas in the sieve and cook them in the water until they’re warmed throughout, about 1 to 2 minutes if fresh, or 2 to 3 minutes if frozen. Set the peas aside.
Before draining the pasta, scoop out about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water with a heat-safe measuring cup. Drain the pasta, then return it to the pot. Pour in the green sauce, about ¾ of the Parmesan and the peas, and add a small splash of the reserved cooking water (not the end of the world if you forgot it). Stir gently until the pasta is well coated and bright green, adding another splash or two of pasta water to loosen the sauce and make it almost creamy.
Divide into bowls immediately. Top each with a sprinkle of the remaining Parmesan, a few dollops of ricotta, and a sprinkle of lemon zest and red pepper flakes (both optional). Finish the bowls with a light drizzle of olive oil. Enjoy! Leftovers will keep for up to 2 days in the refrigerator, covered (technically, they’ll last up to 4, but the flavor degrades as time goes on).

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente according to the package directions, stirring often. Place the peas in the sieve and cook them in the water until they’re warmed throughout, about 1 to 2 minutes if fresh, or 2 to 3 minutes if frozen. Set the peas aside.
Before draining the pasta, scoop out about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water with a heat-safe measuring cup. Drain the pasta, then return it to the pot. Pour in the green sauce, about ¾ of the Parmesan and the peas, and add a small splash of the reserved cooking water (not the end of the world if you forgot it). Stir gently until the pasta is well coated and bright green, adding another splash or two of pasta water to loosen the sauce and make it almost creamy.
Divide into bowls immediately. Top each with a sprinkle of the remaining Parmesan, a few dollops of ricotta, and a sprinkle of lemon zest and red pepper flakes (both optional). Finish the bowls with a light drizzle of olive oil. Enjoy! Leftovers will keep for up to 2 days in the refrigerator, covered (technically, they’ll last up to 4, but the flavor degrades as time goes on).

Meanwhile, warm the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until the garlic begins to sizzle, then reduce the heat to low. Cook gently, lightly shimmying the pan and turning the garlic every now and then, until the garlic is soften and turning lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and pour the contents into a stand blender.
Add the cooked kale stems to the blender when the time’s up. Use tongs to transfer the kale leaves over to the blender (you actually want to bring some of the water with them). Add most of the zest from the lemon, and 1 tablespoon of the juice. Add ¼ teaspoon salt, the red pepper flakes (if using), plus about 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper.
Blend until the mixture is completely smooth and silky, adding more spoonfuls of water if necessary to gain traction. Taste, and add more salt, pepper or pepper flakes, and/or another tablespoon of lemon if desired. We want it to taste lemony! Set aside.

I found the base for this recipe in Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables by Chef Joshua McFadden, with Martha Holmberg. It’s one of my very favorite cookbooks, and I reach for it all the time. I’m slowly working my way through Joshua’s vegetable techniques (for example, he suggests grilling vegetables without oil—let’s try it and report back).

It’s difficult to capture the true vibrance and silkiness of this fresh sauce in photos. Mine don’t do it justice. I actually skipped over this recipe in the book, but then I saw it again in The New York Times. The technique reminded me somewhat of these spinach-stuffed shells, so I was intrigued. Both recipes briefly cook greens in boiling water before transforming them into something more enticing.

Joshua’s recipe calls for a full pound of kale, and the stems are discarded along the way. My broccoli cheese soup makes use of the broccoli stems, so I thought it might be fun to try including the kale stems. It worked! I just sliced the stems into 1/4-inch pieces and simmered them in a sieve for a few minutes before adding the kale to cook underneath.

Spring is here! It switched on like a light bulb about a week ago in Kansas City. The daffodils are on their way up, the birds are chirping, and Cookie and I are thrilled. I’m literally humming, “The hills are alive,” on our walks around the neighborhood.

Today, I wanted to share a shockingly green pasta dish with you. It’s easy to make, nourishing and comforting, which is exactly what we need right now. I wouldn’t blame you if you find the color off-putting, but I promise it’s so tasty!
The cool thing about this dish is that we use the same pot of water to cook the kale (including the kale stems), pasta and peas. You’ll need to set a few timers. It’s not complicated, but maybe wait to pour another glass of wine until you’re sitting down to eat.

Once it all comes together, this dish almost tastes like deconstructed ravioli. It’s bright green and punctuated with tender peas and creamy ricotta. Make some for dinner tonight?

This lemony green pasta recipe tastes as bright as it looks! It’s easy to make with kale, pasta, and peas—they all cook in the same pot. Serve this pasta immediately for the best color and texture; leftovers are best consumed within a day or two. Recipe yields 4 servings.
This lemony green pasta recipe tastes as bright as it looks! It’s easy to make with kale, pasta, and peas—they all cook in the same pot. Serve this pasta immediately for the best color and texture; leftovers are best consumed within a day or two. Recipe yields 4 servings.

Bring a large pot (5-quart capacity or greater) of heavily salted water to boil. Meanwhile, prepare your kale by slicing or stripping the leaves from the stems (save them). Discard the rough bottom of the stems, then slice the stems into pieces about ¼-inch wide. Place the stem pieces in a fine-mesh sieve.
When the water is boiling, place the sieve in the water, resting the lip against the top of the pot. Cook the stems for 3 minutes, then remove the sieve and add all of the kale leaves to the pot. Put the sieve back in the water on top of the leaves and cook for 5 minutes (do not drain the water).