KALE SALAD

This afternoon I went to the farmers market for the sole purpose of getting kale to make the massaged kale salad that my friend Aarti made on her new food network show Aarti Party. Coincidentally, I ran into Aarti at the market.

I love kale! I always have it in the fridge and generally eat it at least three times per week. It incredibly nutritious-from the same family as broccoli. My recipe is a loosely based on Aarti's recipe, but it is a good example of how you do not have to follow a recipe word for word. I used the same technique of massaging the kale, but I swapped out the mango for another sweet ingredient, golden raisins and instead of the pepitas, I opted for toasted almonds. Now, back to the kale massaging, you might think that sounds weird, but kale is pretty tough. By literally rubbing it with a little sea salt, olive oil and lemon juice (or a bit of your favorite salad dressing), you break down the fibers in the kale and it becomes really tender. Give it a try.

Kale Salad
1 lemon, cut in half and juiced
olive oil
sea salt
1 tablespoon honey (optional)
1 bunch kale, cut into ribbons
1/4 cup almonds, toasted (or your favorite nut raw or toasted)
1/3 cup golden raisins (or mango or apple)

Mix the lemon juice with several tablespoons of olive oil to make a simple vinaigrette. Place the kale in a large bowl, sprinkle with sea salt and drizzle with half of the dressing. Using both hands, gently rub the dressing into the kale for about 2 minutes. You will notice that the kale turns deep green and becomes softer. Stir the honey into the remaining dressing. Add the nuts and raisins to the kale. Drizzle with the remaining dressing to taste.