Slow-cooked black kale bruschetta
Most brassicas will release a cabbagey miasma if cooked for too long, not so with black kale. It may go against our instinct but the Italians seem to know the virtues of culinary patience. It can be eaten as a starter or dressed up with ham or eggs for a more substantial meal. Feel free to omit the crème fraîche and instead use ricotta, mozzarella or burrata. Add a pinch of dried chilli and a few sprigs of rosemary or thyme to the cooking pot for extra punch. For a bowl of winter goodness, forget the bread and mix the kale with cooked white beans or lentils, reheated in a little stock.
Ingredients
- 2 red onions, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 heads of cavolo nero, leaves stripped from the stalks and roughly chopped
- 240ml chicken or vegetable stock (or water)
- 1 tbsp crème fraîche
- 40g Parmesan (or a vegetarian equivalent), grated
- pinch of grated nutmeg
- 1 lemon
- slices of good bread
- salt and pepper
Method
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Step 1
Heat some olive oil in a pan on a low heat, add the onion and cook for about 10 minutes, until soft but not coloured. Add the garlic, black kale, a pinch of salt and half the stock.
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Step 2
Partially cover the pan with a lid and cook slowly on a low heat for about 30 minutes until the leaves are tender. Stir occasionally and add the remaining stock if it starts to dry out. Let the liquid cook off in the last 5 mins so that the edges start to crisp slightly.
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Step 3
Stir in the crème fraîche, Parmesan and nutmeg. Add more salt, some pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice to taste. Heap on to slices of toasted or griddled bread rubbed with olive oil.