kale salad

How to Massage Kale

If you’ve asked yourself how do you soften kale for salads, we’ve got you covered. After washing and drying your kale, remove the ribs/stem from each kale leaf. Tear or chop the kale into bite-sized pieces, then sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Next pour a little olive oil in your hands and work your way through the kale, massaging the leaves until they darken in color and tenderize. I swear that a massaged kale salad tastes a million times better – we wouldn’t prep kale any other way!

Prefer to massage your kale without oil? Try a little fresh-squeezed lemon juice instead!

I do this a lot for my Cilantro Lime Mexican Kale Salad

How to Make Kale Salad with Cranberries and Fresh Lemon kale Salad Dressing

This easy peasy kale salad with cranberries is loaded with tasty mix-ins. There are so many kale salad ideas! I chose to add carrots, broccoli, red onion, dried cranberries, cheese, sliced almonds and sunflower seeds, but you could totally get creative here and empty out your crisper drawer!

Raisins would work excellent instead of the cranberries, and if you’re not feeling the fruit right now, load your salad up with extra veggies instead! I used cheddar cheese here (a favorite salad mix-in of mine!) but feta or goat cheese would work marvelously too. You could even go dairy-free and make this scrumptious salad vegan!

Easy Kale Salad with Fresh Lemon Dressing

PREP TIME20 minutesTOTAL TIME20 minutesSERVINGS4 servingsCUISINEAmericanThis easy kale salad features fresh veggies and a super simple homemade lemon dressing, making it perfect as a healthy side dish or light lunch!

Ingredients

• 5 cups chopped kale
• 1-2 tsp olive oil
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 cups chopped broccoli
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 cup cheese optional (cheddar or feta work great here!)
• 1/4-1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup cranberries

Lemon Dressing

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp honey or sugar adjust + add to taste

Instructions

• First make your dressing by combining ingredients above in a lidded mason jar then shake well to emulsify. Dip a kale leaf in the dressing and adjust sweetener, salt, and pepper to taste. You can make this dressing as sweet or tart as your heart desires!
• Next massage your chopped kale with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt. Rub with your fingers until leaves begin to darken and tenderize. This makes it taste great and gives the kale a silky texture!
• In a large bowl, combine massaged kale, broccoli, almonds, cheese, carrots, onion, sunflower seeds, cranberries. Shake your dressing once more and pour about 1/3 of the dressing over the salad. Toss to coat and add extra dressing, to taste.

Recipe Notes

Optional: I like to add poppy seeds to my salad dressing on occasion to give it a lemon poppyseed vibe – feel free to follow suit!Nutritional information does not include cheese and other optional ingredients 

NUTRITION INFORMATION

Calories: 334, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 26g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Sodium: 315mg, Potassium: 744mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 9985IU, Vitamin C: 146.3mg, Calcium: 192mg, Iron: 2.7mg