I went nuts at the farmer’s market again today! I generally get so excited, that I forget that I only have a short period of time to eat the multiple bags of veggies, fruits and greens that I bring home. This is a recipe I came up with, after such a trip!
I found the most beautiful hued kale! Light green in color with a gorgeous light purple trim. It’s called Russian Kale. Despite it’s lighter color, the leaves are quite tough. it’s probably meant to be used in cooking, but I was determined to use it in a salad. The key to making a great kale salad is to thinly shred and massage your kale! So I decided that this particular kale would need to be more finely shredded and require more vigorous massaging;) I am up for the task!
I picked up these fantastic herb scissors at William Sonoma, but any kitchen scissors will work! Cut the kale into thin, ribbon shaped pieces and remove any thick stems!
Here is were the fun begins! Drizzle about 3 TBS of EVOO over the shredded kale and sprinkle with 1/4-1/2 tsp of good salt. Massage your kale. Be rough with it! Bruise it! Batter it! 3 minutes should be sufficient, but if in doubt, massage a bit more! If you are interested in making this recipe a bit more substantial, you could add 1-2 cups of cooked quinoa at this point, as well. The warm quinoa will help to breakdown the kale fiber.
At this point, I like to add my dressing. The simplest ingredients make the best food, so just sherry vinegar, lemon juice, EVOO and salt should be perfect!
If you crave more flavor, add a hefty scoop of your favor pesto. By adding the dressing to the salad now, you are allowing the flavors to properly infuse into your kale! you can also add the nuts and cheese. I used pistachios and parmesan cheese. Pepitas, sesame seeds, almonds and cashews are some of my favorite nuts that I add to salads. For cheese, I often use feta, cotija and blue cheese (when I’m feeling decadent).
Now, you can shave the asparagus. This is an easy way to eat asparagus raw, without cooking it:) Just peel it like you’re peeling a carrot. Add it to your salad. Let the flavors soak in! Next, fire roast the bulbs of the spring onions.
Char the bulbs, one at a time, directly on the flame of a gas range….unless you are using a BBQ. In that case, you can roast them all at once! You want to make sure that the bulbs get nice and charred on all sides. The goal is to get them so fired up, that they are black, soft and start to ooze (about 5 minutes). Place aside to cool. Once they have cooled down, removed charred skins and slice the bulbs thinly. They should be completely soft and cooked through.The greens of the onion can be sliced and added to the salad, as well!
The salad is complete! Add salt and pepper to taste, or another squeeze of lemon, if needed. At this point you can add cooked chicken to make this a substantial meal. I love this salad, because, in my small household of 2, it lasts for a couple days and gets tastier the longer it sits!
- 1 Bunch of Kale, thinly shredded
- 5 Spears (or more) of Asparagus, shaved
- 5 Spring Onions, charred over a gas range or BBQ
- 1 Bunch of Cilantro, chopped, finely
- 1 Handful of nuts (your choice)
- 1 Handful of crumbled cheese (your choice)
- 3 TBS EVOO, plus 3 more
- Salt to taste
- 3 TBS Sherry Vinegar
- 1 Lemon, juiced
- Wash and dry all veggies.
- Using kitchen scissors, thinly slice the kale into ribbon sized shreds, removing any tough stems.
- Drizzle 3 TBS of EVOO onto the kale with a pinch salt and massage the kale for 3 minutes, making sure the kale is wilted and broken down.
- If you are going to add quinoa, add it here, while it's still warm.
- Add 3 TBS of Sherry Vinegar, lemon juice and the rest of the EVOO.
- Add the nuts, cheese and cilantro to the kale mixture. Toss well.
- Shave the asparagus, using a vegetable peeler. Add it to the kale mixture, tossing all ingredients.
- Char the bulbs of each of the spring onions, one at a time, placing the bulb directly on the flame.
- Continue rotating until all sides are charred and the bulb turns soft (about 5 minutes per bulb).
- Let the bulbs cool, then remove charred bits. Thinly slice, each bulb.
- Add to kale mixture.
- Add cooked chicken, if you wish.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Will keep for 3 days in the refrigerator!
- To create a more substantial meal, consider adding leftover chicken or 2 cups of cooked quinoa!
- If you do this, would be good to add ¼ cup of fresh pesto or double the oil and vinegar!
- The key to a great kale salad is to shred and thoroughly massage the kale with EVOO and a pinch of salt!