Lentils with Sausage and Kale
The guidelines and proportions I give below are just a loose structure. You may find you want a lot more kale and a lot less sausage or vice versa. There’s really no messing up this dish. And if you’re a Trader Joe’s regular, they sell precooked, vacuum-packed lentils which are fantastic and a huge time save – as well as cut up kale. Sometimes, weeknights can be a total bind and you have 15 minutes to make dinner. If you have these short-cuts in your pantry, this is possible – and I doubt any take-out can deliver that fast.

1 1/2 cups lentils de Puy
Stock or water to cover the lentils (see below)
¼ cup olive oil
2 fresh sage leaves
Kosher salt
1 pound spicy Italian sausage (turkey sausage, merguez, kielbasa, etc. also great here)
6 to 8 cups shredded lacinato or regular kale (see below for whole kale leaves)
Grapeseed oil
Sherry vinegar

1. If cooking lentils: Pick and wash the lentils and place in a medium sized pot. Add enough stock or water to cover the lentils by 2 inches. Add olive oil, sage, and a generous pinch of salt (if using stock, make sure it’s not salted), stir, and bring to a boil over high heat. When the lentils come to a boil, reduce heat enough so the liquid is at a moderate simmer, and cook lentils, stirring and tasting for doneness from time to time, until the lentils are soft and chewable but still have a pleasant bite/toothsomeness to them, about 20 to 25 minutes. Drain the lentils, reserving the cooking liquid. [I like to add the liquid to the pan in later stages, or if there’s enough, it makes for a satisfying soup with a few spoons of lentils for lunch the following day.]

2. While your lentils cook, cut the sausage into 1-inch pieces and, if your kale comes whole, thinly slice the kale into ribbons. If you like to remove the spine of the kale, do so, but I always like a bit of crunch and heft, and on a weeknight, I’m too rushed and lazy to remove the spine. I do, however, trim quite a bit of the dry stems on the bottom.

3. In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan and heat until the oil shimmers. Add the sausage, and cook, stirring from time to time, until the sausage is well-browned and there’s no pink inside, about 7 to 9 minutes. Add the cooked lentils, reduce heat to medium, and stir to combine; cook until the lentils are warmed through, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add a splash of vinegar and deglaze the pan, scraping the brown bits off the bottom. Add the kale and toss to combine. Cook, stirring, until the kale is wilted approximately 3 to 4 minutes. While the kale cooks, to help it wilt and if the pan seems dry, add a generous splash of the lentils cooking liquid or water. Remove from heat and serves immediately.

Serves 4.