Orecchiette With Tomato Sauce And Kale Recipes

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and red-pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until onion is softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Sprinkle with sugar and toss to coat. Add vinegar and cook until completely reduced, about 1 minute. Season mixture with salt and remove from skillet.
• Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to skillet and increase heat to medium-high. Add kale in batches and cook, stirring, until greens are wilted and just tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Season with salt. Return onion mixture to pan, stir to combine, and cook until just heated through.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta.
• Return pasta to pot, along with kale, butter, and Pecorino. Cook over medium heat, stirring and adding enough pasta water to form a light sauce that coats pasta. Add nutmeg to taste and season with salt. Divide among 4 bowls and serve each with a few thin slices of goat cheese on top and red-pepper flakes to taste.

Steps:

• Set aside 1/2 pound of the tomatoes. Quarter the remaining tomatoes, or cut into wedges if very large. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a wide, nonstick frying pan or in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is tender and golden, about eight minutes. Add the two large garlic cloves. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds to a minute. Add the quartered tomatoes, the sugar, basil sprigs and salt, and bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down and the sauce is thick. Taste and adjust seasonings. Remove the basil sprigs, and put through the medium blade of a food mill. Return to the pan.
• Meanwhile, finely chop the tomatoes you set aside. Add the remaining small clove of garlic, salt to taste, 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and a couple of leaves of basil, chopped or slivered. Allow to sit for 15 minutes.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and salt generously. Add the pasta, and cook al dente, 10 to 12 minutes, following the cooking time suggestion on the package. If desired, stir 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the cooking water into the tomato sauce. Drain the pasta, and toss with both the warm tomato sauce and the uncooked tomato concassée. Serve with Parmesan, Pecorino or ricotta salata.