Chorizo, Apple & Kale Sandwich

From the September Pike Market Community Kitchen at the Pike Market Senior Center.


Cooking skills focus: Sauteeing, balancing flavors

Ingredients:
1 t cooking oil
6 chorizo sausages (Spanish style, fresh, not cured), sliced 1/2" thick
1 T cooking oil (if needed, see below)
2 bu kale, ribs removed & cut bite-sized
1 head garlic, cloves peeled & sliced
salt & pepper TT
1 lemon, juiced
3 apples, diced medium (1/2" or so on a side)

Instructions:
1. Heat a large saute pan over high heat. When you can see some wavy smoke lines coming from the pan, add the 1 t oil. Allow it to heat up for a few seconds, coating the pan, and get ready to add the chorizo.
2. Add the chorizo and brown well. reduce heat to medium-high and cook through. Remove and set aside. Heat the pan again over medium-high heat.
3. You will be adding the kale in batches since the pan won't hold all of it at once without being really overcrowded. Before the first batch, if there isn't enough combined oil and fat rendered off the chorizo to coat the bottom of the pan with a decent layer, add up to 1 T cooking oil.
4. Add the kale and garlic in batches, season with salt and pepper and stir gently, cooking each batch for 6-8 minutes or until the kale is well-wilted. When everything's cooked, mix it on a bowl with the chorizo and add the lemon juice. Taste it and season it with salt and pepper if it needs it. Add the apple.
5. Stuff it in a sliced, toasted baguette and eat it!

Taste how the sweetness of the apple complements the spiciness of the chorizo, the tartness of the lemon contrasted with the savory depth of the onion, garlic and kale, and how the textures create a variety of mingled sensations on your mouth. Great job!