Genius Kale Salad

Do we really need another kale salad recipe? Yes. This may just be the last kale salad recipe I will ever need. It came on my radar last week via Heidi Swanson at 101 Cookbooks ~ she got it from the new cookbook by Food 52~ Genius Recipes: 100 Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook.

I'm going through another one of those phases where I really need to get off the carb train and make more produce driven meals.

The kale that we get at the market is so beautiful but I lack the inspiration to buy it and make something. The thing is, I love a good kale salad and every time I make one it disappears immediately. Yet, I rarely make them. I saw this on my news feed this week I was all over it. If Food 52 and Heidi make a big deal out of it then there's gotta be something to it.

The genius in this salad is the addition of not one, but two very different cheeses and it's not very often I see the words "good aged cheddar" as a salad ingredient (the other is Pecorino).

I got a little wedge of Mrs. Quicke's Traditional Cheddar from the market. It's an English clothbound aged cheddar just bursting with rich complex flavors. It's important to note that the cheddar should be chopped or crumbled rather than grated. The little nubs of savory, nutty, tangy, caramelly flavors that really good cheddars create within each bite is what makes this salad standout from any other kale salad recipe I've come across.

I couldn't pull this together fast enough. This salad includes roasted asparagus (or roasted winter squash) and almonds, finishing with shaved pecorino. I also added chopped dried cranberries.

I had a little bit of Pecorino Toscano left from my sheep milk cheese tasting last week. It's moister and less salty than Pecorino Romano (a dry grating cheese that's a common substitute for Parmigiano Reggiano) and has a surprisingly zippy flavor. It's a lovely table cheese especially served with sliced pears or peaches.

A little curd-nerdery: Pecorino just refers to an aged, Italian sheep's milk cheese (Pecora is the Italian word for sheep), so there are different types out there, depending on the region where they are made, but the Romano is more widely available. 

Genius Kale Salad                    

Food 52’s Genius Recipes via 101 Cookbooks

1/2 cup chopped asparagus

Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 bunch Lacinato kale, ribs removed, leaves finely sliced, about 2 1/2 cups

1/4 cup almonds cut roughly in half
1/4 cup crumbled or finely chopped good, aged cheddar

1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries (optional)

Fresh lemon juice
Pecorino or any other hard cheese, for shaving

Preheat the oven to 425F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Toss the asparagus in just enough oil to coat and season with salt and pepper. Spread on the sheet pan, leaving space between each piece. Roast in the oven until tender and caramelized, 20-30 minutes (I used small spears of asparagus which were done in 20 minutes) tossing with a spatula after 10 minutes. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet in the same oven until they start to smell nutty, tossing once, about 10 minutes. Let cool.

In a large mixing bowl, toss the kale with the almonds, cheddar, asparagus and cranberries if using. Season to taste with lemon juice and olive oil (using about 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 2 tablespoons oil). Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Divide onto two plates and finish with shaved pecorino.

Orecchiette, kale & white beans

Orecchiette, kale & white beans, originally uploaded by michele wynne.

There is one cookbook in my small collection that I value more and more each time I peruse it & use it- Eat Good Food -the so-much-more-than-just-a-cookery-book written by a man I truly admire, Sam Mogannam. Not only does it contain a collection of  inspiring recipes, it's brilliance is that it's a guide to shopping for fresh, quality ingredients whilst getting a better understanding for supporting traditional and local food makers and suppliers. It's one of the most consumer friendly books around and an inspiring source for food education.

I first picked up the book from my local library after reading an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about Sam and Bi-Rite Market. My next day off, pedaling across town to the Mission for some work related thrift shopping, I made the turn and headed down 18th St.  At street level, the one block between Delores and Guerrero tips the scale slightly toward residential, but is as bustling as any commercial city street with both foot and vehicle traffic.  I walked my bike and spied the tiers of fresh flowers a half block away and made my way into the tiny, over-flowing market after locking up the bike. I was instantly transported back to my NYC/NYU  days. I didn't do a lot of cooking back then but I loved wandering the narrow aisles and perusing the artfully abundant wire rack shelves of grocery and over-flowing wooden crates of produce. These were the gourmet markets, short on square footage and high in alluring vertical abundance. The Garden of Eden on 14th Street and Balducci's in the West Village were my favorites. Dean & Deluca? not so much. There was something intimidating about that store.

The moment I first walked into Bi-Rite Market I was impressed by the staff, so knowledgeable and friendly, there when you needed them  and giving you the freedom to browse as long a you wanted. I loved the artististic hand lettered signs and personal informative descriptors of wines and cheese. I remember thinking "I just want to live here!". That was about 3 years ago. Next month will mark my 1 year anniversary as part of the Bi-Rite Family. Every day I learn something new.
Oddly enough, this is the first time I've cooked orecchiette pasta. I love it. They're tiny bowls of creamy goodness. I used green curly kale instead of chard as we only had the rainbow chard in the store. The recipe notes that red chard pigment will bleed into the dish and can become bitter. I wasn't sure if that applied to rainbow as well so I decided to go with the kale. I like to use the curly kale when cooking and Lacinato kale in salads. Spinach is good here too.






Orecchiette, White Beans & Chard
from Eat Good Food


1 large bunch chard, about 14 ounces
kosher salt
1 pound dried orecchiette
1/2 cup (about 2 ounces) finely diced pancetta
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
3 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 cups cooked white beans (one 15-ounce can, rinsed & drained)
2 teaspoons chopped thyme or sage, or a combination
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, more as needed
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano


To prepare the chard, strip the leaves off the stems. Dice up the stems and slice the leaves into thin strips, keeping them separate.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then salt generously. Add the pasta and cook until it's almost al dente, a couple of minutes less than the package instructions. Using a large slotted spoon or mesh strainer, scoop out the pasta into a colander and let it drain well. Reserve 2 cups of pasta water, and empty the pot. Return the pot to the burner and set the heat to medium-high. When the pot is dry and hot, add the pancetta and 1 tablespoon olive oil and cook, stirring frequently until the pancetta is golden and most of the fat is rendered out, about 2 minutes. Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and continue to cook until the onion is translucent, about 4 more minutes. Add the chopped chard stems and cook until softened, then add the garlic and cook, stirring for another minute.
Add the beans and using a potato masher, crush about half of them. Breaking down of some of the beans thickens the sauce. Add the thyme or sage, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 cup of the pasta water and stir to combine. Cover the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. Stir in the chard leaves, cover and cook until the chard is tender, 2-3 more minutes.
Add the drained pasta and stir to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, until the pasta is just al dente and the liquid has reduced to a creamy coating of sauce, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Add more pasta water if its too dry.
Remove from heat and stir in remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon juice and 1/4 of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Taste and add more lemon juice or salt as needed. Garnish with the remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano.


This made good leftovers, especially the next morning, topped with a poached egg.

lemony kale caesar salad and little kitchen inspiration

In the little kitchen, originally uploaded by michele wynne.

If anyone had told me, even a year ago (when my go-all-out new kitchen philosophy was transforming the little kitchen), that I would eat, much less purchase, and be happily fileting anchovies in my kitchen, I would have told you you were ca-raaazy.  But, as my palate evolves, so does the little kitchen. Remarkable things have occurred in recent months that continue to enlighten and confound the little kitchen almost daily.
I'm currently reading "The Omnivores Dilemma" and I'm trying to wrap my brain around the whole corn thing---eeek---and pondering the last 3 months that have been the speedy blur of information, education and inspiration as I close in on my first 90 days as an employee at the amazing Bi-Rite Market. Not only am I happily over-whelmed by a dazzle of wonderful food products, I'm inspired by a great bunch of people. The first being Sam, the owner. Sam took over the family business in  1996 and transformed it into a brilliant specialty food market. I've never met anyone so passionate about food and feeding people as Sam. Sam has about 275 employees and knows and greets everyone by name. He personally handed me a birthday card last week and thanked me for my work. That was unprecedented in any place I've ever worked.

The card contained a gift card and I immediately knew what I was going to use it for...something I'd never remotely consider dropping $20 on. Ever. I bought a can of imported Italian anchovies. This didn't just come out of nowhere. A few weeks ago, I took a cooking class at 18 Reasons, Bi-Rites non-profit educational space.  It was a class on sauces. We made Bagna Cauda, an amazing sauce featuring anchovies lightly cooked with garlic and butter. The finished sauce is primarily used as a dipping sauce for vegetables, either raw or cooked. I was also informed about the goodness that anchovies bring to pasta sauces and salad dressings.
This is what I learned about anchovies: Salt packed anchovies have a more intense flavor (I found this true of capers as well) The big can in the picture contained about 20 whole anchovies. Once the can was opened I transferred everything into two airtight jars and packed in more coarse sea salt. When you're ready to use them, rinse the salt off and then place the anchovies in a bowl of warm water for about 20 minutes. This draws out more salt. Cut off the head and tail, then draw the tip of a sharp knife down the back of the anchovy just to make a shallow cut, carefully open the anchovy to reveal the skeleton and lift it out. I then scrape the silver skin off with the knife. Mince up the anchovy and it's ready to go in the sauce or dressing you're making.
I'm all about kale right now, so I made the Lemony Kale Caesar Salad from Eat Good Food which seemed like the perfect place to start with my anchovies and it happily surpassed my expectations. I made a very large bowl of it and the leftover salad was just as tasty as it was freshly made.  Coincidentally I got the latest Bon Appetit in the mail today which included a bit about the healthy veg benefits and kale is said to have more calcium than 6 ounces of milk and more fiber than 3 slices of whole wheat bread and raw kale has more vitamin C, anti-oxidants and phyto-nutrient than cooked.
So I'm off to make another kale salad.

Lemony Kale Caesar Salad
from Eat Good Food

1 medium bunch of dino kale
2 cloves garlic
kosher salt
2 anchovy fillets, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, more to taste
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup grated Parmesano Reggiano cheese, more for garnish
Freshly ground black pepper

Slice off and discard the stalks of the kale. Stack the leaves on top of each other and then slice the kale into 1/4 inch strips. If you're gonna eat this immediately, I might suggest a little massage at this point to tenderize the leaves a little. I tend to make these kale salads in advance to let the leaves self tenderize in the dressing. Set the bowl of prepared kale aside.
Coarsely chop the garlic, sprinkle with some sea salt and give the garlic a smash and smear with the side of your knife. Transfer into an airtight jam jar or a practically empty jar of Dijon. Add the anchovy, egg yolk, lemon juice, Dijon and olive oil . Seal the jar tightly and shake like crazy. Dip a leaf of kale into the dressing and taste it, adding more lemon juice or salt as desired.
Put the kale into a large bowl and drizzle about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dressing over the kale. Using your hands, gently toss until the leaves are evenly coated.  Sprinkle the cheese over the salad and toss again. Taste and add more dressing or salt as needed. Sprinkle a little cheese on top of each salad plate with a quick grind of fresh black pepper.
 

Chicken, Kale & Brown Rice

Chicken, Kale & Brown Rice, originally uploaded by michele wynne.

I am the anti-Gwyneth. I am inspired by her mission to spread healthy eating through-out the land. I truly do aspire to some teensy element of that, if it only be here. Someday? who knows? For now, in my solitary, Kitchen Aid-less little kitchen, I attempt to conjure up good, nutritious food at minimal expense.

So, whilst in temporary possession of GP's latest cookbook, It's All Good, I felt compelled to check out My Fathers Daughter again. I've had my mitts on this cookbook many times, yet this was the first time I zeroed in on the Kale and Brown Rice Bowl. It must have had something to do with  my current obsession with any and all manners of fried rice. So, in my own personal quest at healthier eating, I've put kale (collards and chard, oh my!) at the top of my list.

This is really good. I made a large pan of it and subsequently added  chicken to round out the meal-in-a-bowl concept and I've also topped it with a poached or fried egg and a little grated Parmesano Reggiano for a perfectly satisfying and quickie breakfast.
This is also a little bit of a mash-up of another Kale Brown Rice Bowl recipe I found over at 101 Cookbooks.

Kale and Brown Rice Bowl
adapted from My Father's Daughter
and 101 Cookbooks

1/2 pound lacinato or dino kale, stems removed and sliced into 1/4 inch ribbons
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic-peeled and minced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 1/2 cup brown rice, cooked
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons za'atar

optional add-ons:
red pepper flakes
cooked chicken
a poached or fried egg
parmesano reggiano
pan fried capers

1. Steam the kale for 7 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat and add the diced onions (add optional red chili flakes at this point), a couple of pinches of salt and a grind of black pepper. Cook until the onions are starting to brown and caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add he cooked chicken at this point, toss the pieces around in the pan to heat through, then add the brown rice and kale. Cook and toss until everything is heated through, adding the soy sauce midway through  to deglaze if the pan is getting dry. Finish with small additions of soy sauce to taste.
3. Dish up into a bowl and sprinkle the za'atar over the top.