We ate this salad in Aspen at a restaurant called Lulu Wilson's. It has the perfect combination of salty from the Parmesan, sweet from the currants, earthy crunch from the pine nuts and tartness from the lemon. Everyone we encountered on this trip asked if we had eaten the Kale salad at Lulu's ..... a six year old child even asked us this question ... then admitted that he had not eaten it but was quite tired of hearing about it. We ate the salad, loved the salad, came home and looked for the recipe, couldn't find it so I recreated it from our collective memories. When Elena told me Kelli, "all the way from London" was "demanding" Kale salad I sprung into action. I found the original recipe was now available online and was pleased to see I had it exactly right, my only addition, the zest of the lemon, along with the juice.
So here it is, please to enjoy ....
Kale Salad
1 large bunch kale (about 4 cups)
2 to 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
zest and juice of one lemon
1/2 cup currants
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts
Using a very sharp knife, cut the tough centers out of the kale. Stack and roll the leaves and slice into very thin ribbons. Put kale and olive oil into bowl and toss with your hands. Add lemon zest and juice, toss again. Add the currants, Parmesan, and pine nuts and toss until the salad feels soft. Add coarse sea salt, if needed and freshly cracked pepper to taste.
Adore this salad and have it almost every week and certainly when I want to impress someone! You'll love it!
ReplyDeleteI also make this salad all time. And I agree, it's great for impressing others. People don't realize kale can be so delicious raw!
ReplyDeleteOh, I dream of this salad still... I rarely find boxed baby kale in the grocery store here - tastes the same, but doesn't have the toughness that makes this salad so satisfying!
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