Lemon Linguini with Kale

When we move out of our  apartment and into a house one of the first things I am going to do is plant a lemon tree. I love lemons! I always have a big bowl of them sitting on my counter; they really brighten up my kitchen and remind me to add them to almost every dish.

When my lemons start to look like they’ve seen better days, I slice them up and put them in water. I really love lemon basil water, spa like and perfect for the summer!

This dish shows off my love affair with lemon and is a great spring/summer dish. The tofu ricotta is very cooling; tossed with hot pasta, kale, and lemon juice it’s clean and delicious. Not to mention pretty easy. Cook the pasta and kale while you make the ricotta and you’ll have dinner in 30 minutes flat.

Lemon Linguini with Kale

Ingredients:

1/2 pound whole wheat or brown rice linguine
1 bunch kale (I used Red Russian Kale)
1 T lemon olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon

Tofu Ricotta:
1 onion, chopped into chunks for food processor
2 cloves garlic
1 package (14 oz.) tofu, extra firm. Rinse, drain, and pressed.
2 tbsp. lemon juice plus zest of lemon
1 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. miso paste
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 handful basil
1/2 cup parsley
1/8 cup sun dried tomatoes

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Make ricotta: In a food processor, chop the onion and garlic together with the lemon juice, zest, miso, salt and pinch pepper. You want this to be finely mixed together without any chunks of garlic or onion. Add the tofu and sun dried tomatoes, pulse a few times to combine. Add the basil, parsley, and pulse a few more times to incorporate the herbs in.

Add linguini to the pot and cook 5-6 minutes. Add the cleaned, chopped kale to the pasta water and cook until pasta is al dente, about 5 minutes more. Drain the water from the pot, reserving 1/4 cup pasta water.

Add the lemon olive oil, ricotta, zest, to the cooked kale and linguini. Toss to combine and season with salt/pepper if needed. If the sauce is too thick, add a bit of pasta water, starting with a few tablespoons at a time.

Super simple and so delicious!

Don’t forget to enter my Gluten Free Prize Pack giveaway, you have till Sunday at midnight!