I found a new BFF (best food friend): kale.

I bought some lovely little bunches of it at the farmer's market last weekend. They were small, not those big, extra-wide monster kale bunches I saw today at Fairway.

I pulled them out of the refrigerator last night, fearful that, nearly one week later, they'd be yellow and wilted. But they were still perky! (Reason No. 1 to love kale. I tend to push the limit on all my food, out of laziness and an eyes-bigger-than-my-ambition tendency to purchase more than I can reasonably cook within a week.)

I boiled, de-stemmed and coarsely chopped the kale in salted water for 5 minutes. I sauteed several cloves of minced garlic in olive oil, added a handful of toasted pine nuts, another handful of tiny black raisins, and, after the raisins got all shiny and puffed up, added the kale.

I had this for lunch today. OMG. So sweet. Which is great, because I've been getting a little weary of my super savory lifestyle. I need a little kiss of sweetness, and kale did the trick (Reason No. 2 to love kale). 

Reason No. 3? The water that the kale was boiled in tastes great, too. Not grassy, but mellow. I had it in lieu of tea this morning.

And, of course, Reason No. 4: Kale is good for you. It's got antioxidants, fiber (1 cup contains nearly 20 percent of the suggested daily allotment of dietary fiber), Vitamin K (fights excessive inflammatory-related problems, including the inflammation caused by sugar and chocolate), and few calories.

I find that it curbs my appetite, and my desire for a cupcake. Now THAT'S a BFF (best friends forever).