Adventures In Kale Salad

I mentioned kale salad in a previous post and since it’s a family favorite and family gets together around the holidays, I thought I’d present it here in time for Christmas.  I believe I mentioned in the previous post that kale smells like sweaty socks, and therefore palatability can be a challenge.  This raw kale salad gets around that issue with an amazing dressing that tenderizes the kale and renders it absolutely delicious.

Start by toasting some almond slivers. Put your almonds in a pan and set it over medium low heat on the stove.  Watch them carefully, shaking the pan to move the nuts around every few minutes.  When the nuts start smelling toasted, they are done.  They will acquire some color, of course, but do not judge their done-ness by the color…go by the scent.  Set them aside to cool.

Next, you’ll want to cut up your kale.  It’s best to use lacinato kale for this (also known as flat kale or, more evocatively, dinosaur kale).  Cut the hard ribs out of the leaves and then slice the leaves into ribbons.  Do not use the baby kale that you can get in tubs for this recipe;  it is insufficiently sturdy.  Put your kale into the serving bowl and move on to your pomegranates.

If pomegranates are not in season, you can substitute craisins (sweetened dried cranberries) but if you have the option, go with the pomegranate.  The juicy pop of bright flavor really goes beautifully with the kale and dressing and almonds.  If you opt to use whole pomegranates (instead of buying the little containers full of the arils, which I can’t recommend because they are often less than fresh), then you might be interested in a little trick I learned from Martha Stewart about how to get the seeds out of the fruit.  Cut the blossom end of the fruit off, and then use your knife to score some lines around the outside from blossom end to stem end.  I usually score about four times.  You want to cut through the thick skin without cutting into the arils inside.  Then pull the pomegranate into four pieces; it should come apart more or less along the lines you scored.

Take one of the sections of pomegranate, hold it skin side up in the palm of your hand over the bowl of kale, and gently slap it with the flat side of a wooden spoon.  The harder you hit, the faster the arils will come out BUT juice spatters too.  So if you don’t want your kitchen counter to look like a crime scene, be patient and go slowly.  For this recipe, I find that half a pomegranate yields plenty of arils.

Set the bowl of kale and pomegranate arils aside and work on your dressing.  This dressing is what brings everything together and works like magic on the kale.  Mix up your ingredients, and then pour them over the kale and pomegranate.  Mix thoroughly and leave for at least 30 minutes, stirring again at least once more.  30 minutes is the minimum amount of time for the dressing to work on the kale, but 60 minutes is the maximum.  After that, as the dressing continues to tenderize the kale, the kale will start to get too soft, and then mushy.  Yuck.  So, keep this window in mind while preparing the salad.

When you’re ready to serve, add in the toasted almonds and some Parmesan cheese and stir it all up.  Delish!

You can prep this (mostly) ahead of time.  When I bring this to a family dinner, I bring the components and wait for about 30 minutes before the meal before I put it together.  The only step I would not do ahead of time is slice up the kale.  I’d do that right before I start assembling the dish.  It’s just better that way.  When I made this for the blog, I had the whole salad for dinner.  I didn’t even feel bad about eating it all myself.  Nope, I felt virtuous and healthy.

Give this a try.  I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does.

Kale Salad with Pomegranate and Almonds

Click here for printable PDF of recipe

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup pomegranate seeds (can substitute sweetened dried cranberries if necessary)

1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

1 bunch fresh Lacinato kale

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 Tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 Tbsp honey

1/2 Tsp salt

1/4 Tsp pepper

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

Use a sharp knife to cut out the tough midrib of each kale leaf. Slice the leaves crosswise into 1/4" wide ribbons. Place the kale slices into a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, rice vinegar, honey, salt, and pepper.   30-60 minutes before serving, toss the kale together with the pomegranate seeds and the dressing, allowing the kale to marinate for 30-60 minutes. Stir a couple times while marinating. Stir in the toasted almonds and Parmesan and serve immediately.