Recipe Result: Kale with Sauteed Apples and Onions

My new thing with my Uncanny Knack for Recipe Selection is picking one that seems really really sketch to my inner six-year-old. This recipe for Kale with Sauteed Apples and Onions from Epicurious is an example of this. Kale? With apples? And curry powder? What? The six-year-old shudders.

Nevertheless, I tried it earlier this year and enjoyed it, and so made it again when the Prez was in town. She enjoyed it but thought the flavor could use a bit more pop. I might have underseasoned/salted OR a slight bit of acid (vinegar, lemon juice) might have helped bring out a bit more oomph.

But I enjoyed it both times, personally, just as is. For me, without much meat eating of late, I found that the curry powder added a bit of the kind of flavor that a little bit of animal fat maybe would have added. Then again, what do I know about meat and meat-related flavorings?

I guess to be more accurate, I will say that many vegetable dishes made without, say, bacon or even butter can sometimes have a sort of watery thinness that is ultimately dissatisfying. This, though, felt more interesting and complex, ergo more satisfying.

The curry powder I used was from India Tree, and this might also be a factor to the success of the dish. Their particular mix of turmeric, cumin, coriander, ginger, pepper, cardamom, mace, mustard seed, and cloves worked very well.

I made this dish with a Cap’n Ahab dish, tuna marinated in olive oil and mint on top of a bed of red onions cooked forever with red wine and finished with honey and red wine vinegar. The Prez was underwhelmed also with that dish, while I am completely obsessed with it and want to eat it every five minutes. I thought the kale actually worked well as a side for it, which surprised me as the curry seemed like it could be an odd note.

(There's also a mushroom risotto on there, but the mushrooms were rubbery and I forgot to salt the dish early enough.  Not successful.  BUT!  I made it on the fly, which for me is an accomplishment.)