Recipe: shredded kale salad
Over the holidays when I was recovering from my cold, but still essentially useless, I rifled through my sizable yarn stash and decided to put a dent in it. I wanted to make something for my friend, Kat, who is moving away this very week. Knowing how sorely out of practice I was, I made a trial run which ultimately had some inconsistent tension and resulted in a scarf that I’d be willing to wear, but was too flawed (in my opinion) to gift to someone.
the trial run scarf
I made the test scarf blue because I prefer cooler hues and because I needed to save my green yarns for Kat’s scarf. Green is her favorite color and I happened to have a lot of different funky novelty yarns in greens. It’s a remnant scarf which means you use up the remnants of various skeins of yarn. When I was done with the tassels, it reminded me of a rainforest. And she loved it, which is what really mattered.
kat’s scarf
Even though I’m pretty much recuperated, I am finishing up one last remnant scarf for another friend. It makes me realize how impatient I am to sit down and work on these things when I’m back to normal, because I much prefer being on my feet. So I am forcing myself to hurry up and get it done lest it be forgotten in my yarn bin for another two years.
kaweah likes to keep me company and doze on the couch
But you know, there are days when it is just too nice to pass up getting out under those bluebird skies. Our winter blues are the best kind, really. Erin agrees with me.
i kid you not
After our hike, Erin and I met two other girlfriends in Boulder for a late lunch at Oak. I really like their food, so much so that I reproduced their shredded kale salad at home. I have been loving on winter greens salads for the heartier texture, the slight bitterness, and most of all – because I can make a big batch and enjoy the salad over the course of a few days instead of preparing a salad fresh each time!
olive oil, orange, apple, red wine vinegar, salt, almonds, kale, togarashi
Oak’s version of this salad uses Parmesan cheese, but I omitted that because I wanted to keep this light. They also put candied almonds in their salad (which tastes great) as opposed to the seasoned almonds I had on hand. I think next time I’m going to use baby kale. It’s so tender that I could skip the step of stripping the leaves from the ribs.
strip the leaves from the ribs
roll the leaves up and slice thin (chiffonade)
If memory serves me well, Oak uses a simple oil and vinegar dressing. I wanted mine to have an orange juice base. But you know what? It’s a salad. That means you do whatever you want to it. Of course, I have to say the orange juice dressing is lovely… unless you have a thing against oranges in which case, I am sad for you.
place the vinegar, orange juice, and salt in a bowl
whisk in a steady thin drizzle of olive oil
pour over the kale
Use as much or as little olive oil in the dressing as suits you. I like to have just enough to take the edge off of the acid, but not so much that the salad is an oily mess. As soon as it is mixed, I toss it with the kale. Then I add the rest of the goodies and give it another toss.
slice the apples
add the almonds
gently mix it up taking care not to kill the apple slices
The final touch is to sprinkle some togarashi over the salad. It’s a Japanese chili seasoning that you can find in Asian grocery stores and perhaps the international section of some regular grocery stores. Mine came in a little half-ounce jar and a little bit can bring an added dimension to your salad. It’s wonderful.
sprinkle some togarashi over the salad
If you’re trying to eat healthier in the new year, try this salad. If you just like hearty winter greens, try this salad. If you love making big batches of salad to enjoy without the hassle of prepping one every single time you eat it, try this one.
get your green on
Shredded Kale Salad
[print recipe]
inspired by Oak (original recipe is here)
1 bunch (about 8 oz.) kale, curly or whatever kind you like
1 orange, juice of (or use the juice of 1 lemon as in the original recipe)
1 tbsp red wine vinegar (omit if using lemon juice instead of orange juice)
2 pinches of salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large apple, sliced thin (I used pink lady, but pick one that is sweet, tart, and crisp)
candied almonds (I used seasoned almonds)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated (optional – I omitted this)
togarashi (Japanese chili pepper seasoning)
Wash the kale and strip the leaves from the ribs using a pairing knife. If using baby kale, skip stripping the leaves from the ribs (that would be crazy tedious). Stack the leaves and roll them into a tight bundle. Using a sharp knife, shred the kale by thinly slicing the roll of leaves. Place the shredded kale in a large bowl and set aside. In a smaller bowl, combine the orange juice, red wine vinegar, and salt. Pour the olive oil into the orange juice mixture in a steady, thin stream while whisking vigorously to incorporate the oil. Pour the dressing over the kale and toss. If using lemon juice, just add the lemon and olive oil to the large bowl and toss. Add the apple slices, almonds, and Parmesan (if using) to the bowl of kale and toss together. Season with togarashi to taste. Serves 4.
January 10th, 2013: 12:38 am
filed under asian, fruit, gluten-free, nuts, recipes, salad, savory, spicy, vegetables
