Saturday, April 11, 2020

Southwest Kale Salad With Spicy Chickpeas & Lime Dressing

Delicious Southwest Kale Salad is one of our favorite daily salads; so full of hearty ingredients, one can make a meal of it! Love Kale salads; there are so many ways to enjoy the lovely silky kale and here's one that we enjoy.

When massaged gently for a few moments, kale becomes silky, soft, and eminently edible.The massaging with a couple of drops of oil and salt tames the rough unruly kale into sweet and demure.

Notes:

Please do save the stems from kale; they are delicious stir-cooked simply or with a bit of coconut as a Thoran. The stems maybe added to soups or stews also.

The spicy chickpeas and tortilla strips maybe prepared a day ahead and stored in the fridge until ready to use; but might need to be refreshed by stir cooking for a few minutes to crisp them up a bit.

The Spicy Chickpeas and tortilla strips maybe done on stove top; stir the chickpeas with the oil and a generous pinch of salt in a skillet. When the chickpeas are dry and start getting brown spots, stir in the seasoning mix. The procedure is the same for tortilla strips also. Any extra chickpeas/tortillas strips leftover make a nice topping for soups too - Sizzling Tortilla Soup, Fiesta Soup, Blackbean Soup, etc.

Instead of making the tortilla strips, crushed purchased chips maybe used.

Cooked black beans maybe substituted for the spicy chickpeas.

If you don't have the Mexican Seasoning Mix handy, use a purchased taco seasoning mix.

4 Servings

INGREDIENTS:

1 large bunch Kale
a few drops Extra Virgin Olive Oil for massaging Kale
2-3 leaves Romaine Lettuce, chopped
1/4 small Red Onion, thinly sliced
1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 Roma Tomato, diced
1/2 firm Pear/Apple or 1/4 small Jicama, diced
4 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, coarsely chopped

Toppings:
Lime Wedges for serving (optional)
1 Avocado, diced
1 Jalapeño, cored and thinly sliced (optional)
2 Corn on the cob, grilled OR 1 1/2 cups frozen Corn kernels
1 1/2 cups cooked Chickpeas
2 Corn Tortillas, cut into small pieces
1 Tbsp Oil
1 Tbsp Mexican Seasoning Mix
Salt and Pepper

Dressing
1-2 Limes, Juiced
1 clove Garlic, mashed
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1-2 tsp Mexican Seasoning Mix
Salt to taste

METHOD:

Heat the oven to 400 F. Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Drain the chickpeas thoroughly, blot dry. Place them in a bowl and add half the oil, a pinch of salt and half the Mexican seasonings.Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Put the tortilla strips in the same bowl, add the other half of the oil, a pinch of salt and half the Mexican seasonings.Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake the chickpeas and tortilla pieces stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes until browned a little and beginning to crisp. Remove from oven and let cool on the pan.

If using fresh corn, grill them or cut off the cobs and pan toast until flecked with a few brown spots. If using frozen, pan toast as fresh ones. Reserve.

Make the dressing; taste to adjust seasonings and reserve.

Strip of the leaves from the stems of kale and chop. Place them in a large bowl and drizzle a few drops of the Olive oil with a pinch of salt. Squeeze and mix with fingers until the kale has softened; this should take just a few seconds. Set aside.

When ready to serve, add the rest of the salad ingredients to the kale and mix well. Drizzle some of the dressing and mix well, taste and add more as needed.

Divide the salad into shallow bowls. Top with all the toppings and pass lime wedges if desired.

Enjoy!!


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