Easy Almond and Cranberry Kale Salad

Nowadays, kale salads are almost as common as Caesar salad on any store menu. Well, you can't blame the hype about kale. One cup of raw kale boasts 3g proteins, 2.5g fiber (which makes you feel full and helps stabilize blood sugar), is packed with Vitamin A, C, K, and also contains Alpha-linolenic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid (aka, good fat). Kale also contains lutein and zeaxanthin (these nutrients give kale its dark, green color) which helps protect against macular degeneration and cataracts¹. A while ago I fell in love with the cranberry pepita kale salad sold at central market, and then later, I found another delicious kale salad at a vegan Mediterranean restaurant close to work. Unfortunately, every time I had kale salad, the experience always ended with "What!! No more??? Noo...I finished it again....", and if you know me, I'm the type of person who would rather cook a meal than drive out and buy the meal even if it's already cooked. I am a home body after all. So after some research online and several trials and errors, I made this kale salad and it has been my go-to recipe ever since. The best part about it is that it only takes about 10 minutes, great for when you need to whip up a last minute salad for dinner.

INGREDIENTS:

• 100-110g Kale greens (I used pre-cut and pre-washed organic kale found in the salad section at grocery stores)
• Juice of half a lemon (about 2 tsp)
• 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 1.5 tsp honey 
• 1/4C craisins (I used reduced sugar kind)
• 2T almond slivers
• black pepper

Note: Drizzling 1 tsp of soy sauce is also another option to add some savory deliciousness to this salad as well!

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Remove the hard stems from the kale greens (You don't want to be chewing on tough kale stems while enjoying this salad)
2. Drizzle 1T of extra virgin olive oil evenly over the kale greens and massage the kale with your hands until they wilt. (The oil is what causes the greens to wilt, and by massaging it into the kale, you are helping to speed up the wilting process, which softens the kale).
3. Juice half a lemon and pour the juice onto your kale, be careful to avoid getting the lemon seeds in there.
4. Drizzle 1.5 tsp Honey into the salad.
5. Toss with salad tongs until the lemon juice and honey are evenly mixed into the salad.
6. Add the craisins, almond slivers, and crack some black pepper. Toss again and serve immediately. The salad keeps overnight in the fridge, but tastes best fresh.

(LEFT to RIGHT) Weigh 100-110g Kale greens (after stems are removed). Drizzle olive oil and massage until wilted. Note how much the volume of the kale has decreased substantially in the far right photo

Juice half a lemon (about 2-3 tsp) and add lemon juice and honey to the salad and toss with tongs

Add a few grinds of black pepper, the cranberries and almonds and toss again. Serve immediately

Paired with cauliflower potage and whole wheat naan for a healthy meal!

 ¹ "The truth about Kale" from Wed MD http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/kale-nutrition-and-cooking?page=1