Kale and Hearty

Jo Arnell stresses the importance of eating your greens...

I love kale - the look of it, the taste of it (not tough and bitter, despite its looks, I promise). For a member of the fussy and temperamental brassica family, it's also incredibly easy to grow. I'm sure it would prefer the rich, firm soil that other cruciferous vegetables need, but it will put up with less comfortable conditions and seems to grow well in my light sandy soil. The pests that make a beeline for similar crops leave the kale alone, although some of it can be prone to whitefly. This is easily dealt with by just dipping the leaves under boiling water and rinsing them off prior to cooking. Kale can be sown any time from early spring until late summer. I tend to sow most of the crop in early summer for use during autumn and over the winter. There are quite a few worthy varieties to try and most have wonderfully romantic names - try Red or White Russian, Redbor, Winterbor, dwarf Curly kale or my favourite, Cavolo Nero (also known as Nero di Toscana or Lacinato) which looks so magnificent that you could grow it in the flower border. Add to that the fact that it will withstand the coldest of winters, not bolt in the very dry days and it seems near to being the perfect vegetable. The downside is that not many in my family will eat it. This is because it's highly nutritious; like anything with dark green (or purple) leaves it's rich in folates, phytonutrients and antioxidants and therefore avoided by those in the household who don't care what's good for them. I am on a kale crusade at the moment, though, and will try my best to convert them - I'm going to have to, as most of the veg patch has been given over to it this winter. I often use it in cooking in place of cabbage and chop it into stir-fries and soups. The pasta recipe below involves Stilton cheese (if you're left with a lump of old Stilton from Christmas, it's a good way of using it up), but I also make what I call Kale Carbonara, which is a good emergency dish using a pot of ready-made supermarket Carbonara sauce. Of course you can make your own gorgeous Carbonara base using fresh egg yolks and cream, but I find that some supermarket tubs (not the ones that look and taste like magnolia emulsion) are great to keep on stand-by in the freezer. Then when I need to throw a quick pasta dish on the table, I defrost it, and stagger out to the veg patch for some cabbage or kale. From a standing start this can be made in less time than it takes to cook the pasta. So - fry some pancetta (if you have it), chop the kale into ribbons and add to the bacon (or just gently sauté plain kale in a little oil, if you haven't got any bacon), stir round for a bit, then add the defrosted Carbonara sauce and tadaaa! Kale Carbonara. Sprinkle on some cheese if you feel like gilding the lily (or if you used the 'magnolia paint' as your sauce).

Chinese 'Seaweed'

Yes, kale is the 'seaweed' served up in Chinese restaurants. It's perhaps not the healthiest way to serve kale, as it is deep fried, but it's hard to resist and if you use kitchen roll to absorb the cooking oil it's not so oily. All you need is a wok (or deep frying pan), some kale, oil for frying and seasoning. Remove the central rib and shred the washed kale finely (it should resemble the shredded crinkly paper used in packaging). Place a large shallow bowl lined with a few layers of kitchen roll next to the wok/pan of oil.

Heat the oil and deep fry the shredded kale in small batches until it's crispy. Drain on the kitchen paper, then transfer to another bowl and toss with sea salt and brown sugar. Serve as an accompaniment to Chinese food.

Pasta with Kale, Stilton and Walnuts

Serves 4

• 250g penne pasta
• 250g (approx.) Stilton cheese (save some to crumble on top when serving
• 150ml single cream
• a large-ish handful of kale
• 100g walnut pieces

This is almost as simple as Kale Carbonara, but I tend to lightly steam the kale for 3-4 minutes before adding to the pan of drained, cooked pasta. While the pasta is cooking, put the cream in a pan and bring gently to a simmer. Crumble in the cheese and combine. Drain the cooked pasta quickly and put back in the pan, leaving a little of the cooking liquid. Add the other ingredients and mix them all gently together. Serve immediately.

Minestrone Soup

Serves 4

• 100g cubetti di pancetta
• 1 stick celery, finely chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3-4 kale leaves, washed and chopped into ribbons
• 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• good glug of olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 50g soup pasta or spaghetti chopped into tiny pieces
• 1L chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 tsps oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

Crisp the pancetta first, then add the celery and onion and gently sauté until they're soft (5-10 mins). Add the other ingredients, except for the kale, heat and then simmer for 30 minutes, add the kale and cook gently for another 10 minutes or so. Serve sprinkled with a small handful of Parmesan cheese and some crusty bread.

Jo runs practical gardening courses from her idyllic home in Woodchurch. To find out more visit www.hornbrookmanor.co.uk