Saturday, April 30, 2011

For Snacking

What is this?


Dino skin? That would be cool, but no.

Gross brain from an unknown creature. That would just be gross and no.

It's kale. Dino kale. Tuscan kale or Lacinato kale.

It's really great to add to soup or pasta. To saute or braise. (don't I always say things like that?)

It can also make for great snacking. Yes. Snacking. Trust me.

Rinse the kale and dry well. A salad spinner helps with this. Be sure it's nice and dry before you proceed. Cut the spines out by running a paring knife parallel to the stem. Discard the stems and cut the leaves into pieces. Say, merely as a point of reference, potato chip-sized pieces.

Toss well with olive oil carefully lightly coat each leaf.

Dust with kosher salt and toss well again before placing the leaves evenly on sheet pans.

Place in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes, rotating pans front to back and top to bottom half way through the cooking time.


Ta-Da!

A super healthy, crispy, salty snack you can grow in your back yard, pick up at a farmer's market or buy organically - cheap. A lemony Greek yogurt dip is a nice addition and they really do hold up when dipped. I think dip helps the little ones with some vegetables and though it would be nice to say it's a sure fire way to get the bag of chips out of their hands.....I am not a spin doctor.

It is, however, an interesting way to introduce new a vegetable to kids. Though they may not eat them now, eventually they will and until then the bag is all yours.

1 comment:

Georgine said...

I keep wanting to try this. I buy the kale, then a week later I compost it. This recipe seems easy enough to actually try. That getting is really dry seems hard though. Ahhh... it is just an excuse. I'll buy more and try it.

Check your doorstep for Chuck. Well, not today. She slept pretty well last night and just woke up from a 2 hour nap.