Kale & Roasted Cauliflower Salad

This is a great recipe from Broccoli, Love and Dark Chocolate

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 20 minutes
Roasting time: 20 minutes
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
Roasted Cauliflower:
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
freshly ground black pepper
1 large head of cauliflower, cut into bite size pieces
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salad:
1 bunch of kale, leaves stripped from stalks & chopped
Dressing:
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice (I used a little more than 1 tbsp)
1 tsp maple syrup (I used 2 tsp)
freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425F/220C and line one rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together oil, juice, garlic and pepper.

3. Cut cauliflower into bite size florets and add to the bowl, tossing well.

4. Arrange the cauliflower in a single layer on the baking sheet.  (Note:  if the cauliflower looks dry, drizzle with a little more oil).   Roast for 20-25 minutes (depending on the size of the pieces), flipping the florets halfway through.  The cauliflower should be tender crisp when done and a bit charred.

5.  As soon as the cauliflower comes out of the oven, toss with Parmesan cheese.

While the cauliflower is roasting, prepare the kale & dressing.

1. In a large serving bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon juice, maple syrup and pepper.  Taste for seasoning.  Add the chopped kale  using your hands to massage the dressing into the kale until fully coated.

2.  Add the roasted cauliflower to the kale and toss to combine.  Serve immediately.

RUTH'S NOTES:
1. I prepared the roasted cauliflower in the morning (it's been hot here) and quickly ran it under the broiler for a couple of minutes before adding to the dressed kale before serving.

2.  This is great cold the next day and my daughter added some sunflower seeds and barberries (soaked first in hot water with a pinch of sugar & drained).   I'll have to try that next time.  No barberries... no worries.  Raisins, cranberries or currants would work too.

Shredded Kale & Quinoa Salad with Tahini Dressing

from Foodess 
This time served with some roasted halibut fillets sprinkled with a drizzle of olive oil, aleppo pepper, dried oregano and a squeeze of lemon juice. 

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5-30 minutes (5 if you have cooked quinoa in the fridge - 30 if you need to prepare some and allow it to cool)

Serves 4

Ingredients:
2-3 cups cooked quinoa (3/4 cup quinoa + 1 1/2 cup water or broth)
1 bunch Russian Kale (or whatever kale you prefer), stems removed and leaves thinly sliced across - chiffonade
Dressing:
1/4 cup tahini, well stirred
2 tbsp good extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup dried currants
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds


Directions:
1. If need be cook quinoa - I use a little less than double the quantity of broth (or water) to dried quinoa.  MOST IMPORTANT: since the quinoa has a very bitter coating, it is critical to rinse the quinoa well.  Place in a strainer and run cold water over for several minutes, stirring to ensure the bitterness is gone before adding the quinoa to boiling broth.  Stir quinoa into broth, bring back to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and cover.  Cook until the liquid is absorbed - about 15 minutes or so.   Allow to cool before preparing the salad.

2. In a serving bowl, mix all the dressing ingredients well.  Add the shredded kale and 2 cups, cooked quinoa (save the rest in the fridge for another dish) and toss well.  Taste for seasoning.   I actually added the currants and sesame seeds at the same time, but the original recipe suggests you sprinkle them on top.  I'm sure it would look prettier, but the taste factor was quite delicious with my goof.

A perfect side for grilled fish, meat or chicken or as a simple vegetarian main course.

Chickpea, Kale & Barley Soup

Adapted from food52 

Printable recipe

Prep time: 30 minutes plus overnight if you are soaking dried chickpeas

Cooking time total:2-3 hours 

chickpea broth: 1-2 hours

Barley: 20 minutes

Kale: 5 minutes

Simmering soup: 20-30 minutes

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

1lb/450g dried chickpeas - soak overnight or substitute canned chickpeas rinsed and drained - 1 lb dry = 6 cups cooked; 1 (19oz/540g) can = 2.25 cups)

10 cups water

1 piece Parmesan rind (mine was about 2" long)

1/2 cup or so olive oil, divided

pinch of salt

4 large cloves garlic - one whacked; 3 crushed

2 large sprigs fresh rosemary

1 bay leaf

2 onions, diced

2 large carrots, diced

1 (14oz/396g) tin of fire roasted tomatoes (my tin was diced, so I used my immersion blender to crush tomatoes and juice)

3/4 cup barley (food52 called for pearl barley but I used pot barley)

1 bunch kale, stem removed & leaves coarsely chopped   (Swiss chard works great too)

At serving:  pinch of red chili pepper flakes and grated Parmesan cheese for each bowl

Directions:

IMPORTANT:

This makes a huge pot of soup but it's supposed to be the perfect freezer soup   It totally filled my big Dutch oven and overflowed a bit when I went to add the cooked barley.  Next time I'm going to use my big stock pot - no messy stove top!  I'm freezing 5 (4 cup) ziplock containers and still have one for the fridge (for lunch today!

1. If you're using dried chickpeas - Soak overnight in plenty of cold water.  I actually had mine soaking for two days - life got in the way.  The chickpeas were no worse for wear, so don't worry if you soak them for more than just overnight.   Drain and rinse.

2. Using a large - remember my note above!  Dutch oven or stock pot, place drained chickpeas, 10 cups of water, bay leaf, whacked clove of garlic, rosemary sprigs, 1/3 cup olive oil and salt.   I highly recommend adding a chunk of parmigiana rind as well.   Bring to a boil over medium high heat and once the boil has been reached, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for at least one hour or until tender.   DO NOT DRAIN but remove the bay leaf, garlic, rosemary sprigs and parmigiana rind.

3.  Meanwhile in a medium sized saucepan,  bring  3-4 cups of salted water to a boil and add the barley and simmer for 15 minutes or until the barley is tender but not mushy.  Drain and set aside, but reserve the barley water in case the soup is too thick for you.  

4. Using the same saucepan, warm 2-3 tbsp olive oil and add the diced onions and carrots.  Cook gently over medium heat until carrots are soft and onions translucent. (about 5 minutes).  Add remaining garlic and roasted tomatoes and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.  You can either leave the tomatoes in pieces or use an immersion blender for more of a puree.   Add to the chickpea soup in the large Dutch oven.

5.  Remove the thick central stem from the kale or Swiss chard and then roughly chop the leaves. In order to cut down on pot washing, I use the same medium saucepan with just a quick rinse before filling with more salted water.  Bring to a boil, add the chopped leaves (some people use the chopped stems, if you do add them about 2-3 minutes before the leaves) and boil until they start to wilt (about 3 minutes).  Drain and chop again if you think the leaves are too big.   Add the greens to the chickpea pot and simmer the whole thing for another 10 minutes or so. Add the reserved barley and cook for another 5 minutes.  If the soup is too thick, add the barley water.

Serve with crushed chili pepper flakes and/or grated parmigiana and some delicious crusty bread.

Hearty Kale, Lentil & Quinoa Soup

From Mairlyn Smith's The Vegetarian's Complete Quinoa Cookbook 

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30-40 minutes
Serves 8
Freezes well

Ingredients:
1 tbsp canola oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, diced
2 medium carrots, scrubbed and sliced into 1/2" coins (I chopped all my vegetables in the food processor to fool my family... good thing they like thick puree soups)
2 small parsnips (I had a couple just sitting in my vegetable bin)
1 celery stalk, diced
2 tsp garam masala (I used Epices de Cru Masala Grill Blend)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 tsp dried oregano leaves
5 cups water
1 can (28 oz/794 g) diced tomatoes (but since my family has tomato issues I used Muir Glen Crushed Fire Roasted tomatoes)
1 cup dry brown lentils (since I didn't have any on hand, I used split green dal - or ... lentils), well rinsed and drained
1/2 cup quinoa, well rinsed and drained
2 cups fresh Kale, thick stalks removed and leaves chiffonade
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:
1. Prepare all the ingredients to simplify the actual cooking.

2. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic carrots and celery (and in my case parsnips) and saute until slightly softened (about 5-10 minutes).

3.  Stir in the garam masala, cayenne pepper and bay leaves.  Mairlyn suggests rubbing the thyme and oregano between your fingers to let all the fragrant oils escape.  I, of course didn't read well and just threw them in with the garam masala and let them cook for another minute or two.

4.  Add the water, tomatoes, lentils and quinoa and bring the soup to a boil.   Then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for at least 20 minutes... time for the quinoa and lentils to absorb lots of broth.

Just before serving, stir in the kale and toss for a minute or two until the kale has wilted.  Season with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and serve.

Easy Sauteed Garden Kale

Adapted from In My Mother's Kitchen

Printable Recipe


Prep Time: 5 minutes  

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 large bunch of kale (or other sturdy greens like Swiss Chard), stalks removed, rinsed, drained and coarsely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

2 large cloves of garlic, minced

pinch or two of red chili pepper flakes

Directions

1. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large Dutch oven.  Stir in the garlic & red chili pepper flakes and cook until fragrant -about 1 minute.  

2. Add the greens, toss and coat well with the seasoned oil.  Lower the heat to low or simmer and cook, covered, stirring occasionally until tender (about 10 minutes).

Sauteed Ginger Garlic Kale

Sautéed Ginger Garlic Kale

Printable Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes or until kale is tender

Serves 2

Ingredients
1 bunch kale, rinsed well and coarsely chopped
1 large clove garlic, mashed
½ tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1-2 tsp sesame oil
Sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds

Directions:
1. In a large saucepan over medium high heat, boil the kale in ½ cup or so of water until tender. You might have to add more water during the cooking.

2. Once the kale is tender, drain and set aside.

3. Heat the sesame oil, garlic & ginger in a small skillet over medium heat. Sautee for just a minute or until you get the fragrance of the garlic & ginger. Add the kale and quickly stir fry (should only take a minute or two). Taste for seasoning – you might want to add a little soy sauce.

4. Place in a serving dish and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Great as a side for Hoisin Garlic Flank Steak & steamed rice.

Fall Harvest Soup

Harvest Soup
From Clean Food

Printable Recipe

Hands on time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes or so
Serves 6

Ingredients::
4-5 dried shitake mushrooms
6 cups water
2 tbsp good olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced (or finely chopped)
1 large onion, diced
1 tbsp fresh (or frozen) gingerroot, grated
3 carrots, diced
4 cups kale or collard greens, chopped
2 cups cooked cannellini beans (I used 1(14oz/400ml) can of navy beans, drained)
¼ cup mirin (I ran out so I used Chinese cooking wine)
Healthy splash of tamari
Balsamic apple cider vinegar to taste (I used ¼ cup)
4-5 dashes toasted sesame oil
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Place the dried mushrooms in a medium pot with the water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. When the mushrooms are soft, remove from cooking liquid and slice, discarding hard stems. Dice or slice and return to pot with broth.

2. Heat the olive oil over medium low heat in a large heavy bottomed Dutch oven (or really large pot). Sauté garlic, ginger and onion for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the carrots and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add the kale, beans (I roughly mashed to thicken the broth), mirin and sauté until the greens are deep green and tender.

3. Add the mushrooms and broth to the greens, stir and add tamari and vinegar. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes to combine the flavors.

4. Season with toasted sesame oil and freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Simple Kale & Garlic Stirfry

Simple Kale Stir Fry
Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

Prep time: 5 minutes
Total Cooking time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large bunch of kale, ribs removed and leaves coarsely chopped and drained
2-3 large cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Red chili pepper flakes (optional and as little or much as you enjoy)

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the kale – don’t worry about the sputtering and toss frequently until wilted (4 minutes or so). Add the garlic and toss for another minute or two.

2. Add the cheese and chili pepper flakes, toss and serve

Tonight’s menu was Roasted Chicken with Lemon Chipotle and Thyme Sweet Potatoes. Because the BBQ sauce is spicy, I left out the chili pepper in the kale.