I’ve had a lot of cool foods in the fridge and cabinet over the past few days. Some kale from last week’s CSA box at Great Country Farms; a tube of polenta I picked up on a whim just because I love it. A tomato I brought home from Bigg Riggs’ stand at Saturday’s farmer’s market. An onion I purchased from Mr. Lopez’s stand at the same market, one week earlier. And some chickpeas just hanging out in the cabinet, waiting for an adventure.
Put it all together – as I did in the cast iron skillet tonight – and you’ve got yourself one heck of a meal!
The recipe itself is below, but in case you want to take the long and winding road to get there, here we are. I knew I needed a one-pot meal with minimal cleanup and minimal prep time tonight – we went to Guns N Roses last night, you see, and did not get home until nearly 2 a.m.! – and I also knew I wanted a healthy meal that made use of ingredients I already had on hand. And to be sure, I didn’t have to pick up a single new food for this dinner – a happy feat, indeed! I didn’t have the patience nor the time for tomfoolery in the kitchen tonight, and this meal fit the bill just perfectly.
Now, while I have you on the line, a word or two about Guns N Roses. The show was amazing last night! This was my first GNR show – and frankly, I’m surprised the day ever came, since I never expected them to get together again for a tour. But they were very much worth the wait. They played all the greats, including my very favorite, “Estranged,” and the party lasted for a good two and a half hours. TWO AND A HALF HOURS! I was amazed. It was a sight to behold, and I’m quite glad we went.
Of course, I know y’all aren’t here to discuss Guns N Roses specifically, but I thank you for humoring me. I’m just so excited, you see!
Anyway, back to the food. I put several tablespoons of vegetable oil into my skillet and swirled the skillet around to fully coat it with oil. Then I fired the heat up to medium and added half a diced onion. A minute or two later, I added the tube of polenta, cut into rounds and then into a dice (about four pieces per round), and then added a first go-round of salt and pepper. Once everything began to brown up a bit, I tossed in a drained can of chickpeas and let them heat up, moving everything around very gingerly.
Once the chickpeas had heated up, I added some washed, cut kale and again mixed everything up carefully (so as not to bust the polenta up too much). After about 7 minutes, the kale had begun to wilt, so I added a diced tomato, juices, seeds, and all. Then I added a second helping of salt and pepper and let the flavors mingle for a few minutes until everything was heated through and the kale was nice and tender.
Then it was time to eat! We spooned plenty onto our plates and topped it with vegan parmesan and hot sauce (and, in my case, nutritional yeast, because when don’t I?). And then we mowed down nearly every single molecule. I guess we were hungry!
Recipe below.
KALE-POLENTA SAUTE WITH CHICKPEAS AND TOMATOES.
Serves 2-4
What you’ll need:
2-3 tbsp. vegetable oil
½ onion, diced
1 tube polenta, diced
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 bunch kale, washed, destemmed and roughly cut
1 tomato, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet (cast iron if you’ve got it) over medium heat. (You may need to turn the heat down after a few minutes if you find the onion and polenta are browning too quickly.) Add the onion in an even single layer and cook for 2-3 minutes. Next, add the polenta atop the onion, nestled along the skillet floor, and cook another 3-4 minutes until it begins to brown and the onion becomes slightly translucent. Season with salt and pepper to taste (you’ll do this again near the end).
Next, add the chickpeas in an even layer and after 1-2 minutes shift the ingredients around in the pan gently, letting them settle for another 4 minutes. Then add the kale and gingerly stir the ingredients around again so that some of the kale is able to touch the bottom of the pan. Shift the sauté around every couple of minutes for the next 4-5 minutes.
Finally, add the tomato and another round of salt and pepper, stir gently to combine, and allow the tomato (and the rest of the ingredients!) to heat through. Take the pan off the heat and serve!
:)