Easy Kale Salad

A vegan meal: kale salad and rice
cooked in jalapeño and cilantro broth

One of my favorite way to use up green vegetables is to add them to this great kale salad that I found on the LIVESTRONG site many years ago. This particular batch, in the photo below, was made with kale and celery I saved from the crudité platter that gave me the mirepoix for my ragù yesterday. I made it earlier in the week for my Lenten vegan challenge (see the note about brown sugar and water in the ingredients list) and knew that I should finish it up before it started to turn. Not only is this a great vegan dish, it is also a great base for a substantive meal salad, add a protein and another vegetable and it’s a filling lunch or dinner.

The original recipe is far more Asian in influence, while mine is strictly based on what I usually have in my pantry. Plus, the original site says that the salad serves 6; it could, especially if the diners are not former ruggers. But for the real world, I think that more satisfyingly serves 2.


Easy Kale Salad, adapted from LIVESTRONG’s Nutty Kale Salad, serves 2

Ingredients: 

I added 3 oz. of leftover turkey & a roasted beet cubed
to make the base salad into something more filling.

• 4 ½ cps. kale, about 2 bunches, and add or use other greens to make 4 ½ cps., if you desire, like chard, collards, bok choy, mustard, spinach, arugula, endive, radicchio, beet greens, turnip greens, carrots greens and radish greens, as well as celery 
• ¼ cp. peanut butter, (I suggest chunky!) 
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup or honey, (in a pinch to keep it vegan, use 1 Tbsp. each of water and brown sugar) 
• 2 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce 
• ¼ cp. apple cider vinegar 
• 1 tsp ground cumin 
• 1 tsp ground chili powder or pepper (optional)

Directions:

1. De-vein kale and other hearty greens, like collards, first, and stack the greens on top of each other and roll into a tube; make 1/8-inch cuts along the length of the tube, creating thin ribbons. (If using celery, slice into small bite size pieces) 
2. Reserve the greens in a large bowl. 
3. Combine remaining ingredients, whisking until smooth. (This makes a great salad dressing separate from this salad.) 
4. Pour dressing over kale and toss thoroughly to coat all leaves. Allow to sit 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator, before serving to soften the kale and any other hardy greens.