Do you like salad? Salad can either be really good or really bad. Making a good salad is an art form. Most people assume if you pour some bottled dressing over spinach that’s as good as it gets. There’s a whole world of fantastic salads just waiting to be explored. Salad is all about getting different textures, colors, and flavors together to create something better than the sum of its parts. I don’t think salad is meant to be in recipe form, but to help get some creative juices flowing for you guys, I put together this winter kale salad recipe. 

The secret is…

This salad exemplifies what we want a salad to be. It has the perfect balance of sweet and salty with lots of textures to keep you interested and coming back for more. Kale is the real star of the show here, and I am going to show you how to serve this strange plant in a way you will actually enjoy eating.

The dressing is a lemony dijon dressing that compliments the flavor and adds brightness. 

This salad is also great for meal prep! Put the dressing in the bottom of your container, then the veggies, and the greens on top. Give it a mix when it’s time to eat and you have a delicious and healthy salad on the go! 

Some Notes:

We all know that kale is the holy grail of leafy greens…too bad it tastes like dirt. We try to sneak it into smoothies or soups and pretend that it isn’t there. It’s time to bring kale out of the closet and let it shine. There are two things that take kale from a strange backyard weed to king of the vegetables. 

1. Acid

Something about the acidity takes away the dirt flavor. In this salad we are using lemon juice in the dressing to add brightness. The acid also helps to disguise the bitterness in greens so they have a better flavor. 

2. Massage

Massaging the kale helps to break down the stiff texture and helps it to absorb the flavor of the dressing. ALWAYS MASSAGE YOUR KALE. I know it’s a bit weird but it seriously makes all the difference! Massage it for 30 seconds to a minute. 

To achieve flavor balance…

I always add some sort of sweet item to my salads. It gives it interest and rounds out the flavors. In this salad, I use cranberries and sweet potato to give us the winter cozy vibes in salad form.

When it comes to the crunchy texture in a salad I almost always choose nuts over croutons. Nuts don’t absorb the dressing and get soggy like croutons so your texture is preserved. I use pecans in this recipe but you could easily substitute them with sliced almonds, pine nuts, or walnuts. Whichever nuts you use, make sure to toast them to achieve that deep flavor profile!

I like to add a nutrient rich grain to my salads to make it more filling and add more texture. Quinoa is my go to. 

The last texture that all salads need is something creamy. In this case I use goat cheese. It’s earthy, creamy, and brings the whole salad together. 

You can also add:

-Seeds: Sunflower or pumpkin

-Roasted chickpeas

-Roasted red peppers

-Roasted or pickled beets

-Pickled red onions

The dressing:

For the dressing, I make a lemony dijon dressing to compliment the flavors in the salad and add brightness. Add all the ingredients to a jar and shake! It’s as easy as that! 

Hope you guys enjoy this winter kale salad!