Simple Kale Salad

Fresh kale, olive oil, lemon juice, and salt — the simplest kale salad

Kale salad has become a staple in the salad world, with different variations ranging from cesar-esque (like Luna’s famous Kale Salad), to citrus and fruit filled.
This recipe is the simplest version, although it’s definitely not lacking in flavor.

Simple Kale Salad

Makes 1 side salad

INGREDIENTS

• 1 bunch of kale (any variety –Lacinato, Red Russian, curly, etc — you can even use collard greens!)
• 2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice 
• 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
• Optional diced garlic clove (sub 1/2 green garlic or 1 garlic scape)
• Optional 1/4 cup crushed cashews or other nuts/seeds

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Rib each kale leaf by holding the stem in one hand, and peeling the leaves from the stem with your other hand.  You should be left with a pile of de-stemmed leaves, and stems.  You can keep stems for a snack later (think a crunchy celery substitute that’s super healthy for you, stems are the perfect prebiotic!)  Dogs, chickens, and teething babies also like kale stems.
2. Pile kale leaves on top of each other and chop thinly, and then roughly in the opposite direction, resulting in 1-2″ long kale strips.
3. Place chopped kale in a small salad bowl.
4. Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt, optional garlic, and optional nuts/seeds.
5. Using your hands, massage and mix the kale briefly, until kale looks wilted and everything is well incorporated.  Massaging the kale helps break it down for easier digestion.
6. Serve and enjoy!

NOTES:
This salad is best served within half an hour of massaging.  If you want to pre-make the salad, skip the massaging step until right before you serve.

Ribbing kale is not necessary, and I personally enjoy the added crunch to the salad.  Not everyone in my family agrees, however, so we often still rib it.

We love using finely crushed cashews, either chopped in the food processor or crushed using a mortar and pestle for easier clean up.  This results in an almost creamy salad.

Feel free to add anything else in that you’d like–sliced turnips, parmesan, etc. This recipe is meant as a guide — substitute as needed!

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