Kale Salad Gets Turned Up a Notch

My wonderful readers:

 

I am beyond happy to announce that my sister, Sarah, who has written guest posts from time to time, will be a regular contributor! You can look forward to her amazing recipes and stories of motherhood every Wednesday. I know I am excited and I hope you are too!

 

It all started with roasted carrots.

Such a humble ingredient, and one which I always thought I hated when cooked. Then one day I discovered that when roasted at a high temperature and allowed to caramelize till a dark brown on one side, they are transformed into the sweetest, most delicious vegetable. Caramelization just might be the simplest and best cooking technique that exists!

Fast forward to life post-baby and a simple side dish of roasted carrot slices has become a regular in the dinner rotation. It doesn’t matter how many carrots I cook, there never seem to be enough for Mike and I. It’s great because not only does forgetting about them for 30 minutes in the oven yield better results, but also because a bag of organic carrots makes an insanely cheap side dish and they are long lasting so you can stock up and keep them in the fridge without worrying about having them spoil. I like to slice them about ¼ inch thick on the bias, toss them with oil, salt and pepper and spread out on a baking sheet to roast until deliciously dark and crispy on one side. Not burnt, but almost. And after a pregnancy hiatus from beets, I’ve begun to add them to the roasting tray too. I know, quite fancy!

Anyway, last week I did just that - roasted beets and carrots to go along with some breaded chicken cutlets that I made, but today I had a rotisserie chicken brought to me by my mom (yes I am both lucky and spoiled) and I figured I could use to amp up my roasted vegetables since I didn’t have to cook anything for the main. I ended up making a variation on a filling salad I’ve made in the past to great results. It is just the type of food I like to cook best during the week - simple, seasonal and American I guess you can say. I am an equal opportunist when it comes to food - I pretty much love it all and it’s hard for me to pick a favorite cuisine, but this is the type of food which shows up most often in my dinners at home.

And so - roasted carrots became Tuscan Kale Salad with Roasted Carrots, Beets and Caramelized Mushrooms with Rosemary, Garlic and Balsamic...and feta cheese. Surely if I were putting that on a menu somewhere I would think of an abbreviated title, but there you have it! It was delicious, nutritious and filling, hitting all of my marks for a meal with one side to go with a protein. In the past I’ve made it with roasted fennel (another favorite when deeply caramelized) and arugula instead of kale and have also used sweet potatoes and yukon golds. I’ve also used goat cheese instead of feta which I actually prefer in this dish, but since we always keep feta in the house that’s what I used. Some toasted almonds would also be a good addition. Alas, post-baby I do not have the luxury of time to obsessively meal plan and shop (and cook), so I make due with what I have on hand.

Whichever variation you choose to make, I highly suggest you give it a try for your next meal.

Tuscan Kale Salad with Roasted Vegetables, Caramelized Mushrooms + Feta

1 small bunch tuscan (lacinato) kale

6-7 medium carrots

2 medium beets

3.5 oz container cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp minced rosemary

Small chunk of feta

3 T balsamic vinegar

Olive oil

Salt & Pepper

-Preheat oven to 400

-Thinly slice kale and set aside in serving dish

-Peel and slice carrots on bias to roughly ¼” thick. Peel and slice beets to same thickness. Toss both vegetables (separately to prevent beets from bleeding onto carrots) with oil (I used sunflower oil), salt and pepper and spread out evenly on baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes, check and shake up the pan and roast for about another 10 minutes until dark and caramelized on one side.

-Saute mushrooms with rosemary, salt and pepper until they release their water and get a nice color on them. Add garlic and continue cooking for another 2 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of balsamic and continue to cook for another 2 minutes till nicely glazed.

-Toss kale with sauteed mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Add additional balsamic and olive oil to dress greens to your liking. Add roasted vegetables to greens and sprinkle with feta cheese.

Enjoy!

xx, Randie