Sunday, October 10, 2010

Kale Chips


IE - the only good way to eat kale.

If you're not up on your dark green, leafy vegetables, kale is the one with curly ridges on its leaves. I'm pretty sure I never would have tried kale if CCO hadn't made me. It tastes like you'd expect a dark green, leafy vegetable to taste -- slightly bitter with an aftertaste. I would have happily never eaten it again -- because of the curly leaves, kale can be hard to clean, and it's more bitter than some of it's equally-healthy cousins like chard or collards. But our CSA gives it to us frequently and I always feel guilty letting perfectly good vegetables go to waste, even if I prefer their cousins.

Eat Rating: Good. It really is the best way to eat kale. Crispy, tastes like the outer layer of roasted brussel sprouts.
Difficulty: Easy. Very, very easy.

Recipe courtesy Gregg Keckler

1 bunch kale
Olive oil
sea salt

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Wash the kale and then tear bite-sized pieces of the leaves off the stalk. Set aside and let dry for a few minutes (or if you want to be fancy, use a salad spinner).

Lay the kale pieces out on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle salt to taste over the chips.

Bake for 15 minutes, then remove and let cool. The chips will be crispy and can be stored in a bag for a day or two at room temperature.