Ah, the ubiquitous kale. If you stick close to a local diet, that means lots of kale in the winter. I’m always seeking new kale variations, so I paid attention when I started seeing descriptions of a new technique recently:
Rubbed kale, sometimes called massaged kale. Seriously – you toss raw kale with olive oil, lemon juice and salt. And then you rub it: Knead it, squeeze it, scrub it between your palms. Do that for at least 2 minutes and the kale breaks down, softens and takes on a silky texture.
Yes, you have to rub it after you add the oil, salt and an acid. If you rub the bare leaves, it won’t get all that soft. But think of that oil you’re massaging into your dry hands as a kale spa treatment.
After you soften the leaves (and wash your hands), toss the kale with a few more ingredients and end up with a terrific winter salad. You can add almost anything. For this version, the spicy nature of kale led me to think of sweet and hot touches of maple syrup and cayenne, plus some sliced mushrooms because I had them handy. But you can change it up. Swap lemon juice for flavored vinegar. Add Parmesan, feta or goat cheese. Try toasted nuts and sliced pear. Toss it with a diced avocado.
The method works with regular kale or black kale (aka lacinato or dinosaur kale). The salad even keeps a day or so in the refrigerator.
To see a printable version of this recipe, click on name below:
Purvis: 704-358-5236 or I’ll Bite blog at obsbite.blogspot.com.
