In the Kitchen: Rigatoni w/ Kale & Prosciutto

I’m always looking for easy and adaptable recipes for weeknight meals. So this week I thought I’d share a recipe that is a staple in my kitchen. It usually goes something like this:


1. Pour a glass of wine.

2. Prepare the following:


+ Whatever pasta I have on hand
+ Grab a hunk of whatever cheese I’ve got in the fridge. Usually parmesan, goat cheese, or feta at any given time
+ Saute healthy greens like Kale or Chard with lots of garlic and some olive oil
+ Grab protein if I’ve got it, usually chickpeas, prosciutto, italian sausage, or roast chicken
+ A squeeze of lemon and a heavy-handed shake of the red pepper jar.

Toss in a big bowl. Savor.


I made this pasta dish this week with leftover ricotta and loved it. So tell me, what’s your go-to recipe for weeknight meals?

—–


Rigatoni with Kale & Prosciutto

ingredients:

1 lb rigatoni
1/8 lb prosciutto
1 bunch kale
1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tsp red pepper
3 garlic cloves
Salt & ground pepper

Directions:

Boil a big pot of salted water. While the water is boiling, chop the prosciutto into small pieces. Sauté the prosciutto over medium heat with some olive oil until crispy. Set aside.

Cook pasta according to package. Chop up washed kale into small strips. Saute with olive oil and garlic over medium heat until the kale has wilted. Squeeze half a lemon on top of the kale.

Reserve 3/4 cup pasta water before draining. Combine the pasta water with the cooked rigatoni, kale, prosciutto, ricotta, a small squeeze of lemon, and red pepper. Salt to taste, and ENJOY!


42 Comments

ooh this is on the shopping list for next week. Along with some wine I think…we’ve been sticking to beer since it’s so crazy cheap here (like 50 euro cents) but I miss a civilised glass of wine during meal prep!
Our go to meal lately has been pasta with basically bruschetta topping (tomato, onion, garlic, basil, oil) as a sauce and some prosciutto. Am keen to try yours though as there seems to be a fair bit less oil than mine!

Liz added these words on Oct 20 11 at 3:26 am

yum… thanks for tongihts dinner inspiration!

anglopologie added these words on Oct 20 11 at 4:14 am

step 1 made me laugh out loud! and you make a simple recipe look almost glamorous :)

debonaire added these words on Oct 20 11 at 6:47 am

Your blog makes me so happy! Simple and beautiful, and I am definitely trying out this recipe.

Haley added these words on Oct 20 11 at 8:01 am

This looks delicious!! Always good to get mid week meal inspiration, keep the ideas coming..

Dani Smith (London) added these words on Oct 20 11 at 8:47 am

And I agree with debonaire… Step one makes this ever so more appealing!!! Ha!

Dani Smith (London) added these words on Oct 20 11 at 8:58 am

We should all start off our cooking with no. 1. I’ve been wanting to do more with kale and this is a great way to do so. Looks both tasty and healthy! Thanks!

Rowena added these words on Oct 20 11 at 9:08 am

I’m totally obsessed with your animated GIF recipe instructions. Genius! Brilliant! Bravo!

Cookie and Kate added these words on Oct 20 11 at 10:45 am

so glad you like it! i think i’m going to make more of these.

Kate added these words on Oct 20 11 at 11:31 am

This looks totally great!

Joy added these words on Oct 20 11 at 11:35 am

This look delicious! Putting it on the menu for next week!

Caitlin added these words on Oct 20 11 at 11:48 am

LOVE this fun animated gif and the recipe too! So simple but looks so tasty! Putting it into my rotation :)

Ranu added these words on Oct 20 11 at 3:30 pm

I love simple meals like this. I live with a trained chef (I am thankful every single day), so I never have to do the cooking work, but we’re always looking for new ideas! Delicious.

Erica Midkiff | Dearingford added these words on Oct 20 11 at 3:46 pm

This looks so, so yummy! I lived in Rome for a year and learned that 1} Italian food is the best in the world! 2} Simple is always better!
My go to is roast chicken and potatoes with rosemary – one pan to clean and so comforting!

xo Allison
http://www.spicerandbank.blogspot.com

Allison Egan added these words on Oct 20 11 at 7:05 pm

I just discovered your blog today and I just love it! I also can’t wait to make this :-)

xoxo Ally

http://www.allysoninwonderland.com

Ally added these words on Oct 20 11 at 9:13 pm

This looks so good. My go to meal for in a light dinner is sliced turkey, apple slices, smoked Gouda, mango- ginger chutney and craisins on a croissant. So delicious!

Elizabeth added these words on Oct 20 11 at 11:55 pm

This recipe looks so delicious and I love the graphic. Adore your blog!
-Julianna
http://lavenderlash.com

Julianna added these words on Oct 21 11 at 10:13 am

yessss!!! this sounds amazing. my go to meal is what I kindly refer to as a “garbage salad”. whatever nuts, fruits, cheeses, etc I have to use up I toss in with some lettuce; a dash of poppy dressing and POW. fast food.

m.fay added these words on Oct 21 11 at 4:18 pm

[...] {via} [...]

Friday GIF « rosemary on the tv added these words on Oct 21 11 at 11:12 pm

[...] leek soup, Wisconsin beer-cheddar soup with pretzels, rigatoni with kale and prosciutto as a cool animated .gif, cranberry apple doughnuts, nutty apple bread, New York style bagels, [...]

Cranberry Apple Doughnuts and Recipe Roundup | The Heavy Table - Minneapolis-St. Paul and Upper Midwest Food Magazine and Blog added these words on Oct 25 11 at 9:04 am

I love all those ingredients. Thanks for posting a great mid-week fast, easy, tasty, nutritious meal.

Hotly Spiced added these words on Oct 28 11 at 6:14 pm

Really, anything containing kale and cheese is a winner in my book! I usually just saute kale and then when it’s almost done I put in some white beans and blue cheese or feta. So, so good!!

Brittany added these words on Oct 28 11 at 7:18 pm

[...] walk, which was done in my pjs, I lounged, I caught up on blogs, and sorted my mail, and bumped in this great recipe, and thought, why [...]

Bacon makes everything better | My 33 People added these words on Oct 29 11 at 12:24 pm

This is such an awesome go to recipe. That’s what I love about pasta, it’s ease and versatility. And way to use kale.

Alison added these words on Oct 29 11 at 5:31 pm

Love the sound of this recipe – definitely going to try it. but I keep reading it and I can’t see what to do with the cloves… I might leave them out anyways

Mazz added these words on Oct 30 11 at 3:51 am

Oh I’m so silly … I get it now – that’s the garlic! Never heard them called cloves before!! I’ve learnt something new! Sorry about that

Mazz added these words on Oct 30 11 at 3:55 am

this is great. i’m totally stealing this idea! (and this recipe) THANK YOU!

cara added these words on Oct 30 11 at 11:12 am

Greetings! Extremely beneficial assistance on this short article! It truly is the small adjustments that make the largest alterations. Many thanks a good deal for sharing!

Iphone 5 added these words on Oct 30 11 at 12:03 pm

I just started making this and realized you don’t mention what kind of ricotta, or how much. I’m going to try it with fresh (versus salata) to taste… I’d love to know what you recommend!

kate added these words on Oct 30 11 at 6:36 pm

LOVE this new design for all of your recipes!

Bobbilee added these words on Nov 01 11 at 8:12 am

[...] What a fun animated recipe! [...]

Favorite Things for Reading & Travel: Fall 2011 | The Naptime Chef added these words on Nov 02 11 at 6:02 am

Made this tonight. DELICIOUS! And easy too.

Anna of (Green Gable) added these words on Nov 02 11 at 9:33 pm

Oh yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed it:)

Kate added these words on Nov 02 11 at 9:46 pm

[...] This rigatoni, kale and ricotta pasta looks like a most delicious excuse to whip up another batch of DIY ricotta. [...]

Clippings: November 3rd, 2011 | Cream and Sugar added these words on Nov 03 11 at 8:01 am

[...] Such a cool way to follow a recipe [...]

Happy Weekend | Lovestruck Social Events added these words on Nov 04 11 at 11:44 am

[...] Source: Wit & Delight [...]

Wit & Delight’s Rigatoni w/ Kale & Prosciutto « DOORR added these words on Nov 04 11 at 2:53 pm

Love the graphic!! Great recipe, especially step number one!

Kathy added these words on Nov 04 11 at 3:57 pm

[...] What a crafty approach to share a recipe. [...]

Have a great weekend. | My Blog added these words on Nov 08 11 at 9:06 am

[...] example, this formula of Kate’s. It’s genius! My edition turned out to be linguine, spicy salami, [...]

A Formula for Fabulous | Gourmet Style Girl added these words on Nov 10 11 at 11:34 am

[...] I attempted to make farfelle pasta with prosciutto, kale and ricotta. I found this recipe on Wit + Delight and substituted rigatoni for farfelle instead. It’s a quick and fairly easy dish to make, not [...]

Farfelle with prosciutto, kale, & ricotta « The Art of Pasta added these words on Apr 23 12 at 10:14 pm