With an on going winter, I tend to indulge in heavier foods. I recently had to forced myself to take a break with some good raw greens. I bought some nice kale which I usually turn into a smoothie or cooked. This time I made a raw kale salad.
Most people I know would not like plain, straight up, raw kale. I'm sure there is someone out there that says they like raw kale, plain with nothing added. There is always that person, but I think they're lying. Nobody likes raw kale straight up with nothing added to it. Well I suppose if you're a goat you may. A goat once ate my name tag on a school trip.
This salad is something that takes the star of the show and supports it with a large cast. The kale may be the star but without the supporting cast, the kale is nothing. With the supporting cast it's a jaunty musical.
I know people that would never touch kale in any form. In fact they won't eat anything that is any shade of green. My partner's 20 year old niece told me she has never eaten a vegetable but she can force herself to eat a pickled cucumber. My partner's father says green things look like poison. He does put iceberg lettuce on his bacon sandwich.
I was going for a middle eastern inspired salad, with garlic, parsley and lemon being the flavours. I also added mint which is commonly used in a middle eastern salad. The Lebanese salads that I've had, often have fresh mint in them.
I really like red onion in a salad, but if you're not a fan of raw onion, the dressing with the garlic would be quite enough flavor from the allium family.
To cook the quinoa I boiled a cup and a half of water and a cup of rinsed and drained quinoa. After it boiled I turned it to low and covered for around five minutes or until the water evaporated.
The lentils were rinsed and cooked until they were tender but not mushy. Both the quinoa were cooled on a plate to cool faster.
Kale salad
200g kale leaves
2 carrots grated
2 cups chopped parsley
1 small red onion
1 cup quinoa uncooked
1 cup lentils uncooked
Additional items added to the quinoa lentil mixture
1 cup each of raw walnuts, raw sunflower seeds, raw pumpkin seeds, raisins, and pomegranate seeds. I used what I had and what was available.
Sometimes I toast the seeds for a nice nutty flavor. This time I kept it raw for a boost of extra nutrients.
Pomegranates seem to be plentiful right now. I have in the past put other fruits in a kale salad. You don't have to put the fruit but I like the sweetness combined with the slight bitterness of the kale and the tangy lemon dressing.
lemony garlic cashew dressing
1 cup soaked cashews
1 cup olive oil
1 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup white wine or cider vinegar
4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or dried
Salt and pepper to taste
Water if necessary for blending (from soaked cashews)
Blend ingredients until smooth and creamy adjusting seasonings as desired.
This salad could be considered gluten free. Quinoa is actually a seed rather then a grain.
This is a high protein packed salad with naturally occurring fats from the seeds and walnuts. If you wanted to skip the olive oil you can just substitute with more cashews and a little water.
I dressed the kale and vegetables separately so I could control the amount of lentil quinoa mix and kale mix, according to our individual preference. I knew that Marc would want more of the lentil quinoa mix then the kale.
I also thought it would keep longer if mixed separately. The kale may add water to the seeds and lentils.
I topped the lentil quinoa mixture with the kale mixture. The reward for eating the kale salad is the base of seeds and lentils.
I personally don't mind the kale mixture on it's own. There is something satisfying about the leafy texture coated with the creamy dressing.
A small amount of each item on a plate is so packed with nutrients and fibre that it gives me fuel for quite a while without feeling tired or over full.
Thank you for dropping by and have a great day
Photos taken with a Nikon D7500 by me except the ones of me
