roasted (because i have to use it once)

the other day, it occurred to me

that i may have misnamed this blog,

spoken too soon, 

grabbed onto something 

that i couldn't fully own.

three seconds earlier,

i realized that while i really do

love not lazy. rustic. 

i, it turns out, am a roasting maniac

and i had the perfect name:

roasted.

from what i can tell, it has yet to be claimed

(quick someone jump on it),

i've heard that blogging tells

you about yourself and my first lesson

was that i love to roast,

which believe it or not,

i didn't realize. 

i cook in a hot oven 

and on a rimmed baking sheet

more than i cook 

any other way. 

it's an obvious fallback.

but giving it further thought, i realized

what a pigeon-hole that was,

delicious of a pigeon-hole that it may turn out to be.

sure, i'd write about a chicken (eventually),

some salmon,

fruit and nuts, 

whole shallots,

corn,

a pepper,

maybe that recipe for special-occasion dungeness crab, 

i made almost a year ago to the day,

brussels sprouts 

and 

scallops.

and more.

but, then i thought, i'd be done,

cut down before my blogging prime,

forced to launch:

steamed.

(fyi: also, yet to be snatched up.)

because in all my imagining,

and maybe i'm sometimes guilty of

dreaming inside the culinary box,

(although i hope not),

i never thought 

to roast greens.

they're for steaming, 

for boiling,

for eating raw,

i thought.

until this weekend. we 

watched jacque pepin, who is

effortlessly lovely and has the ability

to make anything look simple and, more

importantly irresistible. 

he was making

chili con carne, which he 

prepared in a pressure cooker 

and stuffed into

lettuce leaves. 

see, what i mean? 

he kind of gets away with things 

that i would shun 

other chefs for. 

and he made the whole bundle 

look like it wouldn't be a 

mess to eat.

it would.

but, then, just as i was contemplating

changing the channel,

pepin appeared with a tray of kale and 

i heard the word roast.

i put the remote down.

it seemed too easy to work,

too much of a rather 

uninspired vegetable - 

reserved as an add in

for soups

and

pastas -

not a star in its own show, 

to pack that much punch.

before roasting

but as we watched him

place the leaves on rack set over a

roasting pan, drizzle with a very tiny 

amount of oil and a very light sprinkle 

of kosher salt, toss the whole

thing in a 250˚F oven, very cool

by roasting standards,

i knew we had to try

to make crunchy kale.

yes, the end result is crunchy. 

like, kettle chip crunchy.

like, you can hear someone in

the next room take a bite, crunchy.

it's was the perfect

accompaniment to the squid stew,

nibbled on the side 

and 

crumbled atop the bowls.

(and the next night, when we heated up

the stew leftovers, i stirred the

few remaining pieces of crunchy kale

into the tomato-based broth. 

it mellows well.)

after roasting

these would also be fun as a 

garnish for a chicken

or fish dish -

a great alternative to the

oil-using

fried basil sprig or spinach leaf.

jacques pepin's crunchy kale

pepin cautioned against using too much olive oil, which i strongly second. the pieces that had a few extra drops, were the only ones that didn't perfectly crisp and also seemed to retain extra salt. if you have an oil mister, i think this is a good time to bring it out. the rack helps air circulate all around the leaves, rather than roasting the top and steaming the bottom.

1 bunch kale, stemmed and leaves torn

1 tablespoon olive oil (or less)

kosher salt

heat oven to 250˚F. place oven rack or cooling rack on baking sheet. top with kale leaves. drizzle with olive oil or mist very lightly. sprinkle with kosher salt; toss to coat. roast 20 to 25 minutes, or until leaves are crispy, turning leaves if it seems necessary.