This salad is the bomb, ya’ll. I am not a huge kale fan, but I scarf down every bite of this whenever we make it – which is amazing for me to say about a salad!
The keys to this salad are 3-fold:
1) only use Lacinato Kale (also called Dinosaur Kale) -do not buy curly kale (trust me here) and
2) chop the kale leaves into tiny pieces ( I mean like the size of confetti!) and finally,
3) MASSAGE the dressing into salad. Yes, massage your kale – sounds weird, but it is so effective at getting that delicious dressing into every single bite!
If you are not familiar with kale, I show below what Lacinato kale looks like (again, not curly kale) so you know what to look for. The second picture shows how to easily strip the tough center vein out, by folding in half longways, and slicing it out. Then you chop the long pieces into tiny chards. It takes a little time, but it’s so worth it!
Then you are ready to massage your kale. It’s crazy, but it really makes every bite so good. The final beauty of this salad is the sweet/savory of the final ingredients – saltiness comes from the feta and the dried cranberries provide the sweetness – not much, but just enough!
The rest is up to you – this is a great side salad for most any entree. Or add your protein of choice to make this a complete meal – and I swear, because the kale is such a hearty green, the salad is not soggy the next day – great for lunches!
Try it out – you will be SO glad you did!
Another reason I love this salad, is that it becomes a meal, just by adding roasted salmon, sliced filet mignon or whatever you like!
Chopped Kale Salad
Nutritious Kale is transformed into a sweet & savory chopped salad that the whole family will like!
Ingredients
- 1 large bunch Lacinato Kale
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)
- 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
- 1/3 cup pine nuts - toasted
- Dressing:
- 4 TBSP olive oil
- 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1 TBSP honey
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- juice from 1 lemon
- salt/pepper to taste
Directions
- Step 1 Wash and DRY thoroughly the kale leaves – remove center vein from each leaf with knife – then chop the kale finely into tiny pieces. Place in medium bowl/container
- Step 2 While kale dries, mix up dressing. Add all ingredients to small bowl and whisk.
- Step 3 Drizzle most of dressing over the chopped kale. Use your hands to massage the dressing into the leaves, ensuring all leaves are coated – set aside or chill if not serving right away.
- Step 4 Toast pine nuts in dry skillet for about 3 minutes over med-high heat – when they become fragrant and start to brown, remove from heat & pan immediately. They can burn very quickly.
- Step 5 When ready to serve, add cranberries and pine nuts to kale, and top with crumbled feta. Enjoy!
So good and so versatile!
I totally agree! So glad you liked it!