Ingredients for 6-7 people:600 g pici500 g Tuscan kale (if you can’t find it, you can use another kind of kale or cabbage)50 g almonds15 g pine nuts1 clove of garlic50 g Parmigiano Reggiano50 g aged Tuscan pecorino cheese10 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil coarse salt
Remove the central rib from the kale leaves and wash them. Put a saucepan on the stove with plenty of water in it; when it comes to the boil add a pinch of coarse salt and the leaves. Cook them for 15 minutes, then strain off the water (setting it aside to cook the Pici in) and transfer the kale into a bowl with some very cold water: in this way it won’t change colour. Squeeze the leaves well and put them in a “container” large enough to use an immersion blender in. Add the almonds, pine nuts, garlic cut in pieces, extra virgin olive oil and ½ a teaspoon of coarse salt. Blend until you obtain a smooth, homogeneous sauce, carefully stir in the grated Parmigiano and pecorino, and pour it into a bowl large enough to contain the pasta as well. Cook the Pici in the water the kale was cooked in (if it isn’t enough, add some more) and, when you strain them, set a little water aside again. Tip the pasta into the bowl with the sauce and mix thoroughly; if it seems too “dry”, add a few spoonfuls of the cooking water, stir again and serve immediately while nice and hot.