Sage-Kale-Walnut Pesto Pasta

and the freedom to change your mind

Apr 08, 2025

Hello, and welcome back to Forks and Corks.

I keep taking Substack hiatuses – so much for that New Years Resolution I made to post every week…

While the inner court of my past selves would have most definitely held me in contempt for that lack of consistency, present me is trying to be just a little bit gentler. As I reminded myself today, nothing is forever. Situations evolve, needs change, systems adapt, comfort levels (and therefore, boundaries) respond...and so, I can change my mind whenever I want, too. Freeing when you really stop to think about it.

But the freedom for things to change at the drop of a hat also means that, for me, sometimes I just want something a little bit more grounding. Usually, that means heading to the kitchen and whipping something up – like this pesto with bright lemon zest, earthy kale, fresh sage, and creamy ricotta. It’s spring-y, but just grounded enough.

*A recipe to cook on a day when you need a little extra hand-holding (or, in my case, 10 days…because that’s how much pesto I made).*

Rough Ingredients:

a bunch of kale (de-stemmed and torn lightly into pieces)
6 cloves of garlic
6 sage leaves
1/2 cup of walnuts (lightly toasted) + more for serving
1 cup of ricotta
1 cup of grated parmesan
zest of 1 lemon + the juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt
olive oil, 1/4 cup plus more

*I like to serve this with pasta (of course), finely shaved zucchini cooked in olive oil, and some green peas. For a little extra nutritional punch, it’s surprisingly good with shrimp, but I imagine it’d work just as well with a juicy, roasted chicken thigh.*

Instructions:

In a large pot, heat olive oil until it just begins to sizzle. Add garlic and kale, tossing often to avoid burning the leaves, and cook until just wilted. Remove from the pan. In a food processor, combine the garlic, kale and the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth, adding more olive oil, as needed, to get the desired consistency. Salt to taste.

Serve with your pasta of choice and top with extra lemon zest, toasted walnuts and more parmesan.

Here’s to softening. In the kitchen, and everywhere else.