A quick and healthy whole-wheat pasta dish. Fresh, seasonal fava beans are tossed together with kale and green olives and coated in a light, stock-based sauce.
To start the dish, heat a large fry pan over medium heat and toast the pine nuts until golden. Once toasted, remove from the pan and set aside to cool.
Add the stock to the pan and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Let the stock reduce by about half, which should take about 15 minutes or so.
Meanwhile, bring a pot of cold, salted water to a boil to cook the pasta. Then roughly chop the pine nuts, and émincé the garlic and shallots. Pit and slice the olives in half lengthwise. Chop the leaves of the kale into about 1 1/2" -inch pieces. Discard the stems. Roughly chop the parsley and set everything aside. If using fresh fava beans, which are highly recommended, they should be cleaned and shelled.
Once the stock has reduced by about half, turn off the heat and start to cook the pasta.
While the pasta cooks, make sure you have everything ready as the sauce only takes a few minutes to cook. Gather the chili flakes, salt, oil, butter and parmesan cheese. *Note: For plant-based, use a non-dairy butter such as Earth Balance and a non-dairy parmesan (or omit from recipe).
Once the pasta is about 2 minutes from being cooked, turn the stock to medium-high heat and add the chili flakes, garlic and shallots.
When the pasta is about 1 minute away from being cooked, add the kale, along with a good pinch of salt. Then add the olives, fava beans and butter and gently stir to combine.
Once the pasta is done, drain and add it to the fry pan. Toss gently and add the pine nuts and parsley. Top with the grated parmesan cheese and toss again. Taste for seasoning, garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, if desired. Serve immediately and enjoy.
*Use approximately 1 pound of fresh fava beans (in the pod) to equal about 1 cup shelled beans.