When your “petite” child is eating only buttered noodles for any stretch of time, you find creative ways to sneak in vegetables, including putting the greens directly into the noodles themselves. This Cacio e Pepe, with fresh homemade kale noodles is perfection - everything you love about Cacio e Pepe but with a pile of greens served up in herbaceous noodles and gorgeous contrasting colors.
You need a 4-ingredient simple snack that is 99.7% vegetable super food. This is it. Be careful, they will disappear faster than you expect.
For best results, I recommend baking these in a convection oven. The fans and dry heat of the convection oven dry out the kale evenly for a crunchier chip that retains some green. But if, like me, you don’t have a convection setting on your oven, don’t fret. Bake at a slightly higher temp in a conventional oven and flip and turn the kale frequently.
I tend to use my Red Russian kale for this recipe, mostly because I reserve the Lacinato kale for salads and pasta dishes. I also like the smooth leaves of the Red Russian kale for crisping into a chip, but you can use any variety you have available.
Go easy on the red pepper flakes! The heat intensifies when the kale cooks down.
1 bunch kale, any variety
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
Preheat a convection oven to 325 degrees or a conventional oven to 350 degrees F.
Remove kale leaves from stems and discard stems (see below). Tear larger leaves into 2-inch square pieces. Wash and spin dry. Pat dry with a clean kitchen towel.
Transfer dry kale to a bowl and sprinkle with salt and red pepper flakes. Add olive oil and toss to coat evenly.
Transfer to a baking sheet (parchment optional) and spread out into a single layer. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crispy, flipping halfway. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool until crisp.
Tip: To remove leaves from stems (photo above), hold the stem in one hand. Pinch the leaves between your thumb and index finger of your other hand. Gently pull the leaves along the stem away from the stem end. Don’t throw away the stems - use them in vegetable stock.
