Kale Winter Salad with Walnut Vinaigrette
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Hale Kale the Gang’s All Here. The gang of 5,222, 000 recipes for kale salad that is, four of which are mine.
Why should I bring you another one?
Answer 1: I understand kale, and kale must be understood to taste good.
Kale salads can go very very wrong. I’ve had plenty of $9 bad kale salads in upscale restaurants. I know what it takes to make them go right. Kale needs dressed up to taste balanced so I almost always bring in fruit and nuts.
This kale salad helps with winter blues because it has ingredients that are especially good for your brain like blueberries and walnuts.
Blueberries contain anthocyanins, and are considered a super fruit for the brain, which you can read about in this article.
Pomegranates are only super healthy as everyone knows by now, (if not, read this), and they give a nice sweet, juicy crunch and add brightness which helps to balance the fat and the fibrous texture of the kale.
Shredded brussels sprouts, another super food with very similar benefits as kale, adds a burst of light green, and make up about 20 percent of the salad, but you could go as high as 50% or even more and make this same salad.
Walnut oil is high in Omega 3 Fatty Acid and makes a wonderful wintery vinaigrette.
Answer 2: The nutritional value of kale is nearly epic in the greens business.
There are many vitamins and nutrients in kale, but the overwhelming vitamins are A, C, K as each cup is 34 calorie cup is over 100% of the RDA.
Thus, kale is one of the most nutrient dense foods in the world.
Nutritional Value of Kale
Each cup has 34 calories, 6 grams of carbs with a high fiber content.
Why I am So Crazy to Insist You Eat Kale
The list for the health benefits of kale is growing including it’s fight against several cancers, especially the very deadly colon cancer.
I am not a doctor, nor am I a nutritionist, but I have common sense and food plays a major role here in the prevention of cancer due to organosulfur compounds known as glucosinolates. This is just as much over my head as maybe it is to you, but it’s important to me to control what I can with what I choose to eat.
I have lost two best friends to colon cancer (both members of my wedding party) and the husband of a good friend is back in surgery today. If you’re a praying person, his name is Jeff.
This is serious business, but my wish is to make healthy eating a joy.
I like kale for a few other reasons.
It’s one of the better make ahead salads. In fact, you can put your dressing on in the morning and take it to work for lunch. This salad is best made ahead, because the vinaigrette helps to break down the fibers in the kale.
It’s great for weight loss without starvation. Your body knows kale is nutrient dense and high in fiber, thus, even on a lower calorie regimen, you are getting your nutrition.
This salad is particularly good for your brain and your focus, as blueberries and walnuts are particularly good power foods.
I promise you that this is a good salad, good enough for every day, for specials days and that it will disappear.
It can be fortified with extra protein by adding red quinoa as I did here, or salmon as I did here or here.
There are two main types of kale. I prefer the lacinato kale, also known as Tuscan kale or dinosaur kale, but I will eat the curly kale when I pick it myself at my friend’s farm.
What You MUST DO When Making this Kale Winter Salad.
- Taste for salt.
- Taste for acid.
- Dress ahead.
- Remove fibrous stems.
- Chop finely.
- Eat Plenty
Sweet Potato Kale Apple with Warmed Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
Tuscan Kale Salad, Raisins, Almonds, Pecorino, Lemony Dressing
Chopped Kale with Toasted Almonds
Kale Salad with Cider Maple Vinaigrette
More Kale Salads
More Salads from Spinach Tiger
Kale's Winter Salad with Walnut Viniagrette
Ingredients
- 1 bunch kale
- 4-8 brussels sprouts depending on size and your decision
- 1 pomegranate
- 1/4 cup toasted walnuts
- salt
- pepper
Walnut Vinaigrette
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons good balsamic vinegar or champagne vinegar
- 3 tablespoons walnut oil
- 3 tablespoons olive oil or use all walnut oil
- squeeze of lemon
Instructions
- Wash, dry and trim kale, removing stem. Finely chop to about one inch pieces.
- Wash dry and holding the end of the brussels sprout, slice thinly.
- Roll pomegranate on counter to all sides, slice through skin and remove arils.
- Toast walnut for approximately five minutes at 375 degrees. Chop coarsely.
- Toss kale and brussels sprouts with vinaigrette.
- Add pomegranate and nuts.
walnut vinaigrette
- Mix mustard and vinegar together until well incorporated.
- Slowly add oil.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add lemon if you need more acid.
Notes
Replace pomegranate with blueberries and apples.
Replace walnut oil with olive oil.
Replace walnuts with pumpkin seeds.
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I’m kale and hearty! GREG
I am crazy about kale and every time I go to Trader Joes I pick up their organic Tuscan kale. YUM!! I have some in my fridge right now just waiting for a delicious recipe — it is so versatile. I am so very sorry to hear about your friends — cancer is something that can show up all of a sudden in some cases. If I can recommend anything to older women it’s Don’t listen to your doctor. I know that sounds terrible to hear but now the doctors are saying ” you don’t need a mammogram, you don’t need a pap smear . . . Well, I just found out our 90 year old aunt has breast cancer and I know of an 88 year old woman who has ovarian cancer. The mammogram should have caught the breast cancer and as far as ovarian cancer goes? I know it is difficult to detect but going to the doctor for a regular gynecological test might have caught it. Frankly our physicians are under a lot of pressure to follow the guidelines the government puts out — get the government out of my health care!! So if eating kale will help my health than by golly I’ll eat a ton. Thank you for the recipes — I’m pinning.