Food: Don’t be afraid of the big bad Kale

Did you know that kale is pretty much the best thing that you can eat? It has more protein than meat, more calcium than milk. It has more nutrients per square inch than any other food. And it is delicious. Since I was not the head chef for my latest encounter with kale, I can’t take credit for its perfection in a Moosewood Restaurant recipe of Garlicky Greens with Polenta and Tomato Sauce, but I can say that I did an excellent job removing the leaves from the stems of quite a lot of kale.

In general, people seem hesitant to try kale because they don’t know how to cook it, and truthfully, it can go awry and put you off. But a fail safe method is this:

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet or pot. Add kale (leaves torn from stems and chopped, or, buy the pre-cut kale). Cook (while stirring) over medium heat until wilted and tender. You can add garlic, lemon, white wine, whatever flavor that you would like, about 1 minute after you start cooking the kale (once it has reduced and given you more room in the pan).

Go out and eat some kale. It’s good for you.