First Bounty of the Season

I'm up to my ears in cooking today... it was an afterthought to take a few pictures of what I was doing to share. The first share contained kale, swiss chard, salad greens, lettuce, onions, turnips and radishes. One thing I know about our CSA from last year is that green stuff comes in large quantity. It's fairly important to me to store those greens ASAP if I know I'm not going to use them right away. As I picked up my share and one for a friend out of town, storing things was an even higher priority - and not a hard job.
First start a pot of water boiling - at least 4 quarts, more won't matter. Next, wash and remove the stalks from the kale or chard. 
Just hold the bottom of the stalk in one hand and pull up the stalk with the other. You can discard the stalks from the kale and chard in your compost bin though some people don't mind the taste of the chard stalks, they aren't very yummy to me.

Get an ice bath ready and chop up those greens (one kind at a time of course). Throw them in the boiling water for 30 seconds - they'll turn very bright green. Then scoop them out with a spider or slotted spoon and toss them in the ice bath. 








Transfer to a paper towel or cloth lined baking sheet and pat down to get the excess moisture off. 













Transfer to a plastic bag or other freezer safe container removing as much air as possible (air is BAD when freezing) and freeze.
I find veggies store frozen like this very well for up to a year (yes, I have lost a bag or two in the bottom of my chest freeze before).
Now, what do you do with these frozen greens? Cook with them of course. And one of my family's favorite dishes for greens is this lovely dish:




Kale and Sausage Rotini

Ingredients

13.5 oz. whole wheat rotini

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced thin
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 lb bulk Italian sausage, hot or sweet (I make my own)
• 8 oz. kale, chopped (thawed if frozen)
• 1 c. chicken broth or stock
• salt and pepper
• Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add 1 tbsp salt to the water and then add the rotini and cook according to directions or until the pasta is al dente.
2. While the pasta is cooking, in a 12" skillet on medium add 2 tbsp oil and saute the onions until soft and golden brown (add a little of the chicken broth to keep them from getting to dark or drying out). Add the garlic and saute for 30 sec. Turn the skillet up to med-high and add the sausage, breaking up the pieces as it browns. Once it has completely browned add the kale, remaining oil and stock. Cook, uncovered until the kale has wilted. Add the pasta and toss. Add some of the pasta water if things start drying out in the pan. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. Serve with Parmesan cheese

This recipe is also available from my personal recipes here.