As you may have deducted from many of my previous posts, I am a big fan of kale. Make that a HUGE fan! I started out with the ever trusty massaged kale salad but have since changed my method ever so slightly.
For your build a salad workshop, you can use any greens you'd like. You can use the boxed kind (I like baby spinach and kale mix), lettuce, spinach, or KALE! If you haven't tried it before, I suggest you use it, just once, and see how you like it. You'll get more bang for your buck, nutritionally, and I find my kale salads to be heartier and more filling. Another plus with the kale is once you've prepared it, it stays in the fridge for a good while before spoiling.
When you prepare your kale, wash and dry the leaves then pull off the stems by grasping the stem end with one hand and pulling up on the leaf, away from the stem. This should keep your leaf intact, but if it tears and you get smaller pieces, that's fine. You can then tear your kale into bites sized pieces, but lately I've been stacking them and slicing into ribbons about 1/4-1/3" wide. This makes the massaging process a little shorter, in my opinion. Drizzle a couple teaspoons of olive oil and massage the kale for a couple of minutes. You could even cut it smaller, add the dressing straight to the kale, toss, and let sit in the fridge for an hour or more before proceeding.
This bowl contains about 8 - 10 big kale leaves, thinly sliced. I used curly leaf kale from the grocery store. Other available varieties are perfectly acceptable. My favorite is dinosaur aka Lacinato kale. It's a little harder to find but super easy to grow if you're into stuff like that. :)
I was so excited when I was making this salad that I forgot to take individual pictures of all the elements. The following picture does a good job of showing every ingredient. This is a GUIDE, folks, so feel free to add or subtract any of the ingredients.
When I go beyond making a standard salad (lettuce, cukes, peppers, dressing) I make sure to include many different elements that combine to make a full and satisfying meal that is jam packed with nutrients.
I like to include a grain of some kind. Quinoa is easy and delicious and stores well in the fridge for several days. I think quinoa tastes and cooks better if it has been soaked for at least 8 hours and rinsed very well. In fact, I like to rinse it 3-4 times before cooking to remove any residues on the seeds. If you do soak and rinse the quinoa before cooking, reduce the water by 25% (1 c dry before soaking quinoa plus 1 1/2 c water instead of 2 like the package suggests). You could use brown or wild rice or any other grain you like.
Next, I chop a variety of vegetables that tickle my fancy on that day. Since there have been good prices on peppers, cucumbers, and cauliflower, I used those. I love raw onions, so threw on a few slices of red onions. I don't think a salad is complete without avocados, so I always include one.
For dressing, the possibilities are endless! A beautiful combination of acidic liquid (vinegar, citrus juice), a bit of olive oil, a squirt of brown mustard for emulsifying, and some salt and pepper. I usually use 3 parts vinegar (balsamic, white wine, red wine, apple cider, or lemon or lime juice) with once part oil, 1/2 part mustard, and a dash of salt and pepper and garlic powder. Whisk it together or dump it all into a jar that has a cover and shake shake shake. If you find the dressing to be a little too tart, you can add a little maple syrup at a time until it tastes just right. In this particular salad, I used white wine vinegar.
Have these ingredients on hand. Keep them in containers in your fridge and you'll be able to assemble a salad at a moment's notice. Having the ingredients fresh and ready, you'll be more inclined to grab them rather than an unhealthy snack. How's that for fast food?
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