Green Kale and Spam

the Spam's not pictured, but trust me it was there!

After hearing about kale and its wonderful antioxidant qualities, I decided to pick up a bunch at my local grocer's to cook for the first time. I can't believe I'm actually going to admit this, but I chose a recipe from Bobby Flay (yeah, that guy) for sauteed kale that turned out surprisingly well! This dark green member of the cabbage family has coarse, curly-coiffed leaves that give it a sort of al dente texture and has the slightly bitter bite of collard greens which in this recipe, was nicely offset with the addition of garlic, broth and vinegar. According to this web article, it's a great source of vitamin C as well as phytochemicals that can help prevent cancer. Which is exactly why silly me ate my sauteed bowl o' health with none other than...fried Spam. So?? I didn't have any polska kielbasa laying around, so I went for the next closest thing in my pantry.

Sauteed Kale
(courtesy of Bobby Flay, FoodNetwork.com)

1 1/2 lbs. young kale, stems and leaves coarsely chopped
3 tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water
salt and pepper
2 tbs. red wine vinegar

-Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat.
-Add the garlic and cook until soft, but not colored.
-Raise heat to high, add the stock and kale and toss to combine.
-Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
-Remove cover and continue to cook, stirring until all the liquid is evaporated.
-Season with salt and pepper to taste and add vinegar.

I used chicken broth instead of vegetable stock which I think made for a tastier dish; I also substituted balsamic vinegar for red wine vinegar as that was the closest thing I had at home and I was too lazy to go to the store. It worked fine though.

I like green kale and Spam
I do!
I like them, Pam-I-am!