Simple Kale Salad
One of the reasons I really enjoy having a farm share is that it pushes me to eat foods I would normally avoid because I’m not familiar with how to treat them, or I’ve had a bad experience, or they’re just not on my radar. Kale’s definitely on my radar — it was THE thing to eat before cauliflower and after toasts, I think, right? But I have definitely had some bad experiences with it (steaming and smoothies come to mind) and I haven’t really dug into the right way to prepare it with confidence.
Cut to four weeks of enormous kale bunches from the farm share and me standing in my kitchen with a question mark over my head. As we enter autumn, I see that kale is going to need to enter my repertoire.
I found an abundance of kale salad recipes that I’ve riffed on and hybridized here to create a very simple and delicious salad. The kale is destemmed and sliced finely into a slaw, which mitigates the fibrousness of the leaf. The dressing leans heavily on acid, which helps the tough leaf break down, and the bright lemon and sharp garlic flavors stand up to the kale. Pine nuts add crunch and, of course, a shower of parmigiano reggiano adds umami deliciousness.
I have found this to be quite filling on its own, but I’ve also been serving it frequently with this gazpacho as a no-cook meal solution.
Simple Kale Salad
Servings: 2 large salads || Time: 15 minutes || Source: many many kale salad recipes
Lemon - 1
Olive oil - 1/2 cup
Garlic - 1
Pine nuts - 2 tbsp
Kale - 1 bunch, washed
Parmesan (Parmigiano-Reggiano)
Over a small bowl, zest the lemon. Slice and squeeze the lemon juice into the same bowl. Add a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk in about 1/3 cup of the olive oil, pouring slowly so that it emulsifies. Taste - the lemon flavor should be sharp, but not pucker-your-lips tart. Whisk in more olive oil as needed to reduce tartness and round out the dressing. Crush and peel the garlic clove and add to dressing (no need to chop; you’ll remove this before serving). Set aside to let the garlic infuse into the dressing.
Toast pine nuts in a small, dry skillet over medium-low heat. Keep a close eye and shake the pan from time to time to toast evenly and avoid burning. You’ll be able to smell them as they release oils and start to toast. Once toasted, remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Remove the tough parts of the stems from the kale leaves by slicing along the rib with a sharp knife. There’s no need to remove the smaller, more tender stems at the top of the leaves. Pile kale leaves on top of each other and slice thinly across the leaf to create strips, something like a kale slaw. This doesn’t need to be perfect.
Place kale slaw in a large bowl. Grate up to half a cup of Parmesan over the kale. Scatter pine nuts over the top, then toss ingredients together to mix. Remove garlic cloves from dressing and drizzle over the kale, reserving a couple of tablespoons. Toss the salad together; add more dressing if needed.
Serve, topped with more parmesan if desired.