Throughout my last month of school, I saw variations of this recipe. I kept wanting to try it, only — So many of the recipes called for complicated, homemade salad dressing. You know, with lots of ingredients and things. Which is not inherently bad, but is not what I need during the last month of school.
So I improvised, once using a store-bought dressing, once using a simplified homemade dressing. Both were good. In the future, I will probably — as a matter of personal preference — go with whichever option is balsamic.
Also, the finished salad looks really pretty, which makes it a useful addition to my “oh, crap, a potluck!” toolbox.
But. To the actual foodening.
Kale & Strawberry Salad, Simply
Ingredients:
- 2 bunches kale — Our bunches are of a size where 2 hearty eaters happily finish 1 bunch as a side dish. I do not know that this translates into in terms of leaves or grams or ounces. Your bunches may be larger or smaller; adjust accordingly. Also, while I tend to like red kale for this, I’ve done it with lacinto kale as well.
- 1 pound fresh strawberries
- 3/4 cup sliced almonds
- Store-bought raspberry (or other fruit-inspired) vinaigrette OR store-bought balsamic vinaigrette OR equal parts balsamic vinegar and the oil of your choice (I’m an extra virgin olive oil fan for salads).
What’s Happening:
- First, you’re chopping up the kale into fairly thin strips. Thinner and smaller than you think you need if you don’t normally eat kale raw. Raw kale tends to have a coarser texture than a lot of standard salad-eaters are familiar with; the thin slices help with the adjustment.
- Once chopped, put the kale in a big ol’ salad bowl.
- Slice the strawberries. I feel like this needs less delineation than does the chopping of the kale.
- Those strawberries? You’re putting them in that same bowl with the kale.
- And those almonds? I’m hoping you bought them pre-sliced. (Also, other nuts or even shelled sunflower seeds would probably be just fine substitutions here, depending on what you like and what you have on hand.) They’re going into the bowl too.
- If you’re making a dressing, combine equal parts of balsamic vinegar and oil in something you can shake — something with a lid that closes. If you’re opening a bottle, do that.
- Toss the salad.
- Dress the salad as the folks eating it prefer. I know there are people who prefer to toss the salad with the dressing while it’s still in the serving bowl. I know there are also people who prefer that salad dressings accompany individual portions of salad, whether drizzled on top or in a separate dipping container. This should be tailored to the actual people who will be eating the salad.
But seriously. It’s tasty. It’s pretty. It’s easy. I approve.
