Last year (2015), by virtue of a glitch is the cosmos, I was asked to fill in as a guest judge at the Delray Beach Garlic Festival. I suspect is was the universe pointing to one of the true lovers of all things garlic because clearly it was not pointing to a public speaker. This year, another judge must have fallen into a black hole, as I was asked, again to participate as a Judge. (Someone seriously needs to do a better vetting process if I'm asked to speak with a microphone in hand)
In any event, to ready myself for the challenge I have re-invented Garlic & Greens Spaghetti from the Food Network Magazine Cookbook, Great Easy Meals. (Page 277 for those who want the original recipe)
This dish has everything my husband and I love. GARLIC in abundance. Fresh greens. And, Pasta.
The modifications to this recipe were minimal. We, of course, added more garlic than required and less EVOO. We found adding two onions to the dish made it too sweet and lessened the recipe it to just one. If you have followed us before, the standard pasta is replaced with brown rice pasta. (An FYI, we also tried it with linguine but much preferred the spaghetti version)
We attempted this recipe twice. Once with grilled pork and the second time with blackened shrimp on top. Both were delicious. Both would be made again.
The original recipe suggests par boiling the greens, however we omitted that step. I preferred to saute the greens in the onion/EVOO. I hate to lose any nutritional value in the water bath and we both love sauteed greens.
Ingredients 20 cloves garlic, thinly sliced 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 medium onions, halved and sliced 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more to taste Kosher salt 12 cups torn winter greens, such as kale, chard, escarole or mustard greens (about 2 1/2 pounds) 12 ounces brown rice spaghetti 1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Protein of your choice
Directions Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, cook the garlic in the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, about 3 minutes. (Be careful not to over-brown the garlic or it will taste bitter.) Using a slotted spoon, transfer the garlic chips to a paper-towel-lined plate. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons oil into a small bowl to use as a dip for crusty bread, if desired.
When the water is boiling, Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Our brand of pasta takes about 15 min. Brown Rice Pasta has a different cooking method than traditional pasta. Be sure to follow the instructions.
Add the onions and red pepper flakes to the oil in the pan; cook, stirring, until the onions are light brown, about 10 minutes. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt. When the onions are almost done, add the greens and cook, uncovered, until just tender,stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes
When the pasta is done, remove and reserve about 1 cup cooking water; drain the pasta and transfer to a serving bowl. Add the cheese and toss. Add the greens and some of the reserved pasta water and toss, adding more water as necessary to keep the pasta from clumping. Top with the garlic chips and protein of choice.
