The first night of frost

First night frosts are expected soon, and according to all the experts, that means our chards, kales, cabbages and sprouts will be in optima forma any time now. Bring it on, Abel & Cole. I look forward to the first Dutch curly-kale-flecked-potato-mash-with-smoked-sausage meal of the season already. The leafy green winter veg debut of 2011, however, was for cavolo nero. Which, in fact, was a cavolo nero debut for me.

Cavolo nero is the super gorgeous veg you know from the cover of volume 1 of Nigel Slater’s Tender (what!? you don’t own, indeed you have never seen a copy of Tender? for shame!). Or as the mystery ingredient listed in the indexes of the River Café books. It comes in bundles of matte dark green leaves with a bubble-wrap surface. The flavour is a bit like curly kale, but stronger and quite sweet (apparently sweeter after the first frost). I liked it a lot. I cooked up the sauce below, took a bite to taste, and could have kept eating it straight from the kitchen processor (which would have been sad... but delicious). If you come across this black kale, I’d definitely recommend giving it a try, and this sauce is perfect for showing off the flavour.

PS. Be warned. When executed, this recipe will leave a trail of Very Green utensils.

Fusilli with cavolo nero and parmesan

From the River Café Cook Book.

a good bunch of cavolo nero

a clove of garlic, peeled, whole

fusilli / farfalle / conchiglie

olive oil

parmesan

Cut out the tough core of the cavolo nero leaves, keeping them whole otherwise. (Easy trick: fold the leaf in half and take out the stem in one cut.) Boil, together with the garlic, in salted water for a few minutes. Take out the leaves and garlic (keep the water for boiling the pasta), and pulse in a kitchen processor to a rough paste. If you dislike a strong garlic flavour, add only half the garlic at first, and more to taste. Add a good bit of olive oil and pulse until the green mess comes together in a thick sauce (how much depends on preference – more oil gives a smoother paste and, of course, a richer dish). Serve as a pasta sauce, topped with grated parmesan.

- Naomi