This comes together very quickly and is perfect for busy nights. Thanks to brown butter, the pasta tastes nutty, there’s crunch from wilted kale, briny feta cheese, and a little sweetness from raisins.
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How to Make Pasta with Brown Butter and Kale
I love this recipe. In the time it takes to boil and cook the pasta, everything will be done. I know the raisins might sound a little strange for pasta, but trust me. Brown butter + feta + golden raisins is awesome.
As the pasta cooks, we get everything else ready. First, plump up the raisins. To do this, simply pour hot water on top of them and let them sit for a few minutes. Next, make the brown butter. It’s easy and only takes 5 minutes to do. Basically, you swirl butter in a pan over medium-low heat until the butter solids toast and turn brown. As this happens the butter becomes nutty.
Finally, just before the pasta is finished cooking, throw a bunch of kale into the pot with pasta. After just a few minutes, the kale will be wilted and perfectly cooked for the pasta.
In the time it takes to boil and cook the pasta, everything will be done. I know the raisins might sound a little strange for pasta, but trust me. Brown butter + feta + golden raisins is awesome.
Makes 4 servings
You Will Need
8 ounces dry pasta such as bow tie or penne
1/3 cup golden raisins or regular raisins
Boiling water
3 cup packed kale, tough stems and ribs removed
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Directions
1Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, add pasta then cook according to package directions. When there are 3 minutes left until the pasta is done, add the kale. Drain.
2Meanwhile, add raisins to a small bowl then cover with boiling water and set aside until pasta has cooked.
3Add butter to a wide heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat. As the butter melts, continuously swirl the butter around the pan. The butter will go from brown to burnt quickly, so stay close to the pan when you do this. Continue swirling the butter over the heat until it is light brown in color. Once light brown and smells nutty, remove from the heat.
4Drain the raisins then add to the brown butter as well as the pasta and kale. Toss well, taste then season with salt and/or pepper as needed. Serve with feta cheese scattered on top.
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I make something similar – kale with raisins and pine nuts and a splash of balsamic. i added your pasta and feta. Now it’s over the top!
Thanks,
Claudia
Love, love your website!
I’ve made this recipe several times. I again made kale and pasta this past week-end but added cannellini beans and left out the raisins and used grated parmesean. Mmmmm mmmm.
Do you think salted and peppered chicken or tilapia would go well with this? My husband needs one or the other to convince him to not wrinkle his nose 🙂
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I make something similar – kale with raisins and pine nuts and a splash of balsamic. i added your pasta and feta. Now it’s over the top!
Thanks,
Claudia
Love, love your website!
Thanks so much 🙂 Love your take on the pasta, too!
I’ve made this recipe several times. I again made kale and pasta this past week-end but added cannellini beans and left out the raisins and used grated parmesean. Mmmmm mmmm.
I made this with rainbow chard. I like it better with the cahrd, very good!
You had me at brown butter! YUM!
This sounds lovely! I love the idea of adding raisins. Also I’ve never tried plumping them up with water before, great tip 🙂
Looking fantastic, i can’t stop myself to eat this dish, thanks for share this wonderful recipe !!
Do you think salted and peppered chicken or tilapia would go well with this? My husband needs one or the other to convince him to not wrinkle his nose 🙂
Sure! Chicken or fish would be great!
Awesome! Bc I have all the ingredients in my fridge already! 🙂 Can’t wait! Thank you!!
This looks delicious. I very much like pasta recipes with a lot of vegetables in and a creative aspect. I find all of it in this recipe.