Stewed Potatoes and Sauteed Kale with Tahini Dressing

I got the kale recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. It is my favorite way to cook kale and the tahini dressing is good on anything, especially salads. The only thing I modified from the original recipe is the tahini dressing. It says to use a food processor and add fresh parsley, but I choose not to because I don't want to get it dirty and I usually don't have fresh parsley in the house. I will post the recipe as it is published, then describe how I change it so you can decide whether it's worth it or not. In order for everything to be ready at about the same time, I would put the potatoes on, make the dressing and put it in the refrigerator then do the kale.


STEWED POTATOES
Servings: 4-6
Time: about 1 hour

Ingredients:

8 Yukon Gold Potatoes
2 TBSP Earth Balance
Salt (sea or mineral)
Pepper (fresh ground black)
Powdered Sage (optional)
Cayenne Pepper (optional)

1. Cut the potatoes into chunks. A lot of variation in size in important so that the little pieces form a potatoey mush and the big pieces don't.
2. Put everything in a pot and cover with water. Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat. Cook it until there's no water left and the potatoes are thick.


GARLICKY KALE
Servings: 4-6
Time: 10-30 min. depends on how you like your kale cooked

Ingredients:

5-6 cloves of garlic; chopped or thinly sliced
3 TBSP olive oil
1 bunch of kale; well rinsed and coarsely chopped
1/4 tsp salt

1. Saute the garlic in the olive oil over medium high heat until it is fragrant and golden brown.
2. Add the kale and enough water to help steam it. The amount of water depends on how long you want to cook it. I like it really soft, so I use anywhere from a 1/2 cup to a whole cup. Stir the kale frequently until it reaches the texture you want and all or most of the water is gone.


TAHINI DRESSING
Servings: makes 2 cups
Time: 5-10 minutes plus 30 min. in the refrigerator (I have found that chilling it isn't entirely necessary for the flavors to blend, but I'm sure it helps some)

Ingredients:

8 tsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic; chopped
1/2 cup tahini
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
juice from one lemon (about 4 tsp)
several dashes of fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika (Hungarian if you have it)
Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh parsley (optional)
1/2 cup cold water

1. Heat the olive oil and saute the garlic until it is fragrant. Don't let it turn brown.
2. (This is where I deviate.) The recipe says to put all the ingredients except the parsley into a food processor along with the heated garlic. Blend it until smooth then add the parsley and pulse until it's finely chopped but not pureed. The way I do it, is add everything except the parsley and water into the pan with the garlic (turn the heat off). Once everything is mixed together (it will be brown and ugly) mix in the water with a whisk until the dressing comes together nice and smooth. It should be a light orange color from the paprika. I leave the parsley out altogether, but I guess if you chopped it up fine and added it in that would work too.