If you know me at all then you I’m a bit of a kale addict.
Raw kale salad features prominently on my lunch menus. My usual approach is simple: finely chopped raw curly kale tossed with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Sometimes I add orange wedges, red chilli and sunflower seeds. Other times I add red onion and carrots. Sometimes I add boiled eggs, beans, tofu, tempeh, or bulgar wheat.
This weekend I discovered that Tuscan Kale, aka ‘Cavolo Nero’, is also great in raw salads. A family friend sent this recipe, which sounds like a weird melange of ingredients: Tuscan kale, brussels sprouts, pecorino and almonds in a lemon vinaigrette. Does this really go together?
It does. You’ll just have to trust me and try it. The key is to shred the kale and sprouts very finely. I use my hands to really rub the dressing into the leaves and then give it a half hour to soak in. You could skip the cheese and make it vegan, but I don’t think it would be as good (sometimes those are the breaks!).
If you’ve never had raw kale salad before, this is a pretty good place to start. I suspect it would work well with curly kale, too, or cabbage in place of the brussels sprouts. Ah but that is the beauty of salads, isn’t it? Endless adaptation. Anyone who thinks salad is just a big pile of leaves is just wrong!
Raw Kale and Brussels Sprouts Salad
Adapted from a recipe from a family friend. Made with Tuscan “cavolo nero” kale.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
- 1/4 teaspoon salt plus more for seasoning
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 large bunches of Tuscan kale / cavolo nero (about 1 1/2 lb. total), center stem discarded, leaves thinly sliced
- 12 ounces brussels sprouts, trimmed, finely sliced or shredded
- 1/3 cup almonds with skins, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup finely grated Pecorino, Parmesan, Grano Padano or other hard Italian cheese
Method
- Make the dressing: Combine olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, shallot, garlic, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a pinch of pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to blend then set aside to let the flavours meld.
- Toast the almonds in a skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown.
- Mix thinly sliced kale and shredded brussels sprouts in a large bowl. Toss with the salad dressing (add as much dressing to suit your tastes – you may not need it all). Use your hands if you like to really rub the dressing into the leaves. Toss in the cheese and, if you’re patient, put the salad in the fridge for 30 minutes or so to marinade a bit. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
- Serve garnished with toasted almonds.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Per serving: 195 Calories | 15.3 grams Fat | 8.7 grams Carbohydrates | 8.1 grams Protein | 3.3 grams Fiber
The almond garnish looks lovable. That’s the best part of the recipe. It adds a crunchy element to the savory salad. Amazing.
I love the word “loveable” to describe a salad. It’s all about texture and almonds are where it’s at! I normally do flaked or slivered almonds in salads but I like the lack of uniformity with the chopped almonds. I wonder what it says about my personality that I actually like analysing the various form factors of almonds?
Glad that you liked the slightly off track culinary complement ” lovable”. & your idea of using almonds in various forms is really good. Cheers !
Hmm…I should have probably chopped my kale a bit finer when I made mine yesterday! Love kale salads, but had never made one till this weekend–will have to give your mix a whirl!
Welcome to the world of kale salad. I hope this is only the beginning. 🙂
I’m putting this one file to try later in the year when I finally get to grow Kale for the first time. I wonder if you’ll change my opinion about brussels sprouts too?
I’ve grabbed the link to this to put into today’s Salad Days Mr Linky already 🙂
Brussels sprouts are the best! Hmm, I think most people don’t like brussels because they’re always overcooked. The raw salad thing definitely avoids that. 🙂 Thanks for linking me!
Lucky for me I can buy gigantic bags of baby kale at Costco so I don’t have to cut them up at all. This is one of two of my family’s all time favorite salads, the other being spinach w/ orange segments, pomegranate seeds and caramelized almonds.
I can see why it’s a favourite, Kathy, it’s delicious and very adaptable. I actually had some of the leftovers with a bit of grilled mackerel and oranges tossed with it. Yummy. That spinach salad sounds great, too!