Loving Kale

Well, I have some awesome news on the Kale front. It might be a little silly for me to be this excited about it, but I can't help it. I just love cooking too much.

Anyway.

I was a little frustrated the first couple times I tried making Kale. First, I tried juicing it. I had heard that it was super healthy, and if it was juiced with an apple or some other sweet fruit it would counter-act the bitterness. Wrong. I couldn't even get it down, it was g-r-o-s-s. And I'm not even a picky eater. It even looked inedible- so vibrant neon green, it reminded me of antifreeze.

Next I tried cutting it into strips and sauteing it with some evoo (extra-virgin olive oil), a little sea salt and pepper, garlic, and just a splash of lemon juice. The taste was wonderful but it was extremely tough and chewy. Perhaps I didn't cook it long enough, or perhaps sauteing isn't the best method. I will probably try that again sometime and just cook it longer.

I guess the third time is a charm! This method worked so well I didn't even bother trying it another way. I just sliced it into large strips and boiled it in shallow salted water for about 3-4 minutes, lifting the lid every minute or so to vent. If you don't do that, it will go from that nice vibrant green to dark forest green quickly (a.k.a. less nutritious and less flavorful). I was so excited when I put it in a bowl and saw that it was still a nice bright green, smelled wonderful, and the texture was soft and tender, it was just perfect! It reminded me a lot of spinach, except it didn't cook down as much which was nice, and it doesn't tear nearly as easily. Until I get sick of it, I will most likely be using this method for a long time. I think it would go really well in soups! I have also heard it goes great in smoothies, haven't tried that yet. Perhaps sometime soon.

So that was my Kale experiment! Until next time!

Lindsay