This delicious kale salad is packed full of vegetables and flavor. The bitter greens are offset by the addition of dried cranberries and a honey lemon dressing, while pumpkin seeds and goat cheese add a savory crunch and a salty bite!
With all of my healthy recipes, I had never properly attempted the 'massaged' kale salad, until just recently.
One afternoon, in need of something nutritious, I decided to give kale a go, and I'm so happy I did!
I've been reading about massaged kale salads for years, but can only now tell you they really are delicious! The massaging step makes the typically fibrous, hard-to-eat plant much more palatable and it infuses the dressing into each bite.
Tossed with a few other vegetables, sweet cranberries, crunchy pumpkin seeds, and creamy goat cheese, this salad becomes a colorful feast for the mouth!
After I made this salad for the first time, I realized that the red and green colors from the added ingredients would make this a perfect recipe to close out 2014 with, so I hope you get a chance to enjoy this soon!
I love how pretty the red and green colors look, and the feta cheese sprinkled over the top gives the appearance of snow! 🙂
Healthy Kale Salad
Ingredients
- 4 large kale leaves curly variety, de-stemmed and torn into bite-size pieces
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon raw honey or maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- black pepper to taste
- ⅓ cup red bell pepper chopped
- 3 Tablespoons red onion sliced into thin strips
- 3 Tablespoons dried cranberries
- 3 Tablespoons raw pumpkin seeds
- 3 Tablespoons goat cheese crumbled
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon juice, honey or maple syrup, salt, and pepper.
- Add in the kale and 'massage' the leaves with clean hands, working in the dressing to each leaf (30-60 seconds).
- Toss with the remaining ingredients.
Nutrition
If you have a chance to try this recipe, please leave a star rating and a comment below letting me know how you liked it!
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
I almost always make a kale salad to bring to parties during the holidays!
Sammi
Love kale! Another great recipe Lauren 🙂 Merry Christmas!
Lauren
Thanks Sammi! Merry Christmas to you and your family as well! xo
Thalia @ butter and brioche
This kale salad is seriously all I need after the indulgent Christmas just passed. Thanks for the recipe!
Gay
Could you give more details about how to massage the kale? How long? It seems like it might be easier to do as large leaves rather than small bites? How can I tell when it's enough? Thanks!
Lauren
Hi Gay,
The leaves should be massaged for about 30-60 seconds, until you notice a softening of their texture. The size doesn't matter much, as everything kind of gets worked at once, and smaller pieces make it easier to consume once it's ready! 🙂