My fourth day of Superfood Week features a super trendy foods right now: kale. Aside from quinoa, I feel like kale has totally become the cool kid in the foodie world. Not only is it hip, but it’s delicious AND really really really good for you. Still not convinced by all of my “reallys”? Well listen here: not only is kale high in fiber, Iron, vitamin K but ALSO high in antioxidants, calcium, vitamin A, AND vitamin C. All of these together can help strengthen your immune system, aid vision, help with digestion, and reduce the risk of developing cancer. Pretty major stuff.
I love eating kale in every form possible: in smoothies, soup, raw in salads, and baked as kale chips. Today we’re eating kale in the raw salad form. The thing about raw kale is that it can be pretty tough. There are a lot of recipes which call for massaging kale which turns the tough green into a silky and more chewable texture. Apparently this happens because it’s cellulose is broken down of boring chemistry things that happen which I don’t understand. However, kale does not need a rub down to become a delicious raw salad…it can also “marinate” in it’s dressing for a few hours, which is what I did with this dressing. If you prefer to get up close and personal with your kale though, go ahead and massage away.
The dressing of this salad contains another superfood: avocados. While avocados can get a bad reputation for being high in fat, their health benefits far outweigh their fat content. Avocados are high in oleic acid, lutein, folate, vitamin E, monounsaturated fats and glutathione and all work together to help protect your body from heart disease, cancer, degenerative eye and brain diseases. So what I’m saying is that this salad has got a ton going for it. It’s also really tasty. Aside from the avocados in the dressing, I added some plain yogurt (ANOTHER superfood!), cumin, lemon juice, and olive oil. Simple, yet delicious. Paired with the diced tomatoes, onion, and chickpeas, this superfood salad is a winner.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch kale about 5-6 large kale leaves, leaves removed from stem and finely chopped
- 1/2 red onion finely diced
- 1 can chickpeas rinsed
- 2 avocados 1 for the dressing and 1 diced
- 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In large bowl, combine kale, red onion, chickpeas, and diced avocado.
- To make the dressing, combine remaining avocado, yogurt, cumin, honey, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
- Pulse to mix.
- Pour dressing over kale mixture and toss to combine.
- Enjoy!
I am loving your superfood week over here. I wish I had this for lunch so I could feel energized and healthy all day! And yes, kale is totally the cool kid nowadays. 🙂
Sarah, I had it yesterday and it was the perfect lunch – filling but didn’t weigh me down, and gave me energy for the rest of the day!
Loving how simple yet delicious this looks 🙂
Thanks Jan! That’s the beauty of this salad – so simple but so tasty 🙂