Black Kale Salad

Mmmmmm... love black kale (aka Tuscan, Lacinato or dino kale). This stuff is really easy to grow almost anywhere & though related to cabbage family veggies, has less insect problems... oh, did I say, totally tasty & expediously nutritious? Found this recipe in a great Mother Earth News article comparing the cold hardiness of kales (no surprise the classic curly Vates blue kale won out). This recipe has all my favorite "poverty" foods - beans, greens, cabbage, garlic (all nutritious & relatively easy to get growing in a small plot). The article credited the recipe as being from "Local Flavors" by Deborah Madison - available via Mother Earth News website.

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 2-4

Ingredients

• 1  cup cannellini beans, cooked (navy or big lima beans OK too)
• 1  teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
•  black pepper, freshly ground, to taste
• 1  large onion, finely diced
• 2  leeks, white parts only, diced
• 1  bunch kale, leaves stripped from stems and slivered
• 1  small savoy cabbage, quartered, cored and chopped
• 2  garlic cloves, minced (or pounded with a pinch of salt)
• 1⁄2 cup parsley, chopped
• 1  tablespoon olive oil (plus extra to finish)

Directions

1. Chop all the vegetables (rinse the leeks, kale and cabbage but don't dry them).
2. Warm 2 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy, wide skillet.
3. Add the onions and leeks, and cook over medium-low heat until the onion is soft but not browned, about 12 minutes. Add the kale, cabbage, garlic, parsley and salt. Cook with the heat on low and the pan covered until the vegetables are soft and the volume greatly reduced, about 30 minutes.
4. Add the beans, along with a cup or two of their cooking liquid. Simmer until the greens are completely tender, and season with salt and pepper. Serve with, or over, garlic-rubbed toast, drizzled with olive oil.