This hearty salad is great to have in your summer arsenal as it goes really well with barbecued meat. Its topped with a sweet/tart raspberry vinaigrette that is sweetened with raspberry jam. More like a cold slaw than a salad, it will keep for a few days in the fridge. If you think that you don't like kale, try this, I bet that you will change your mind.
Kale is soooo easy to grow. This is my kale patch. I planted the seeds in April and it was ready to eat by June.
I planted the seeds using my seed tape method(see how to make your own seed tape
here.) The plants are perfectly spaced and therefore have the optimal room to grow.
Just break the more mature leaves off and the plant keeps growing.
Another great thing about growing kale is that it will tolerate a few degrees of frost. This is perfect for my short growing season. I will have kale into October.
Kale is readily available these days in the supermarket. Use baby kale if you can find it. The mature kale also works.
A basket full. It looks like a lot, but it's kind of fluffy. I will use half of this basket for the salad and the other half will go into the fridge for another time.
A quick rinse in the sink to remove any dirt. Use a salad spinner to dry the leaves. Place unused kale in a plastic bag. It will keep for a week in the fridge.
If your kale leaves are small, like the one no the left the stem is nice and tender, no need to remove it. If your kale leaves are large, like the one on the right, the stem is tough and fibrous, you must remove it.
Use a large knife and cut the leaves away from the stem. Discard the stem.
Stack the leaves on top of each other.
Slice through the stack so that you have little ribbons of kale. Watch my
video to see how I did it.
Keep slicing until you have about 10-12 cups of shredded kale.
Next step. Make the raspberry vinaigrette. In a bowl or measuring cup, combine oil, vinegar, lemon juice, mustard,green onion, garlic, jam, salt and pepper. Whisk until mixture is combined and emulsified. I have used homemade raspberry jam here but you can use whatever you have. Feel free to add a bit more jam if you prefer it a bit sweeter.
Pour dressing over kale and toss well to coat the leaves. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 3 hours. The leaves will wilt a bit but they will not become soggy, as a lettuce salad would. Baby kale is more tender than mature kale. You may have to let the salad sit a bit longer if you use mature leaves.
While the leaves are in the fridge, toast the nuts. In an ungreased non-stick pan combine the sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and slivered almonds. Cook over low heat until the nuts are golden and fragrant. Watch them closely, they can burn quickly. Let the nuts cool before adding them to the salad.
Just before serving, toss the nuts and cranberries with the kale. Toss to combine. I like to serve my goat cheese on the side, but you could add it to your salad at this point.
It's so delicious. Vary the seeds, and fruit if you wish. Walnuts would be a good substitution. You could also use apples, pears or grapes instead of the cranberries.
Makes enough for 6 people
10-12 cups shredded kale leaves
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/4 cup sunflower seeds, toasted
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
1/2 cups crumbled goats cheese
1/2 cups dried cranberries
Dressing
6 tablespoons canola or olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon raspberry flavored wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
1/2 clove garlic, minced
3 teaspoons raspberry jam(add more if you have a sweet tooth)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Vary the cheese for a different twist. Feta, or grated Swiss would work. I have also changed the fruit up. A sweeter apple, crisp pear or halved red grapes all work with this.
