- 1 head garlic
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus additional for drizzling
- Salt and pepper
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 1 bunch kale, thick stems removed and discarded, leaves shredded
- 1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese (a generous handful), plus more for serving
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
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Pre-heat the oven to 400ºF.
Cut the end off the garlic bulb, exposing the tops of the cloves. Place on a piece of foil; drizzle with EVOO, salt and pepper. Wrap the garlic up in the foil and roast for 45-50 minutes. Let cool, then squish out the garlic cloves from the skins into a food processor.
While the garlic is roasting, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt it, add the spaghetti and cook to al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the starchy cooking water.
Bring another large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and the kale and cook for about a minute; drain and squeeze dry.
Add the kale, cheese, lemon juice, mustard, anchovy paste and Worcestershire sauce into a food processor with the garlic cloves and puree. Season with pepper. Add the pine nuts and about 1/4 cup EVOO. Process, streaming in additional EVOO to form a thick pesto; season with salt.
In a pasta bowl, combine the pasta, pesto and reserved pasta cooking water; toss to combine. Serve with more cheese at the table.
This is one of many “Yum-o!” recipes – it’s good and good for you. To find out more about Yum-o!, Rachael’s nonprofit organization, visit
www.yum-o.org.