Raw Kale Salad & Raw Onion Rings
Kale Salad with Currants, Pine Nuts, and Lemon-Thyme Vinaigrette is a recipe inspired by “Crossroads” – a vegan cooking book by chef Tal Ronnen.
Crossroads is also a 100% vegan fine dining restaurant in Los Angeles serving plant-based dishes such as “Artichokes Oysters with Tomato Béarnaise and Kelp Caviar” and amazing fresh pasta like “Pappardelle Bolognese” or “Acorn Squash Ravioli with Kale and Black Garlic Butter Sauce”.
In the book you can find great techniques for making the perfect pasta and it includes some inspiring recipes, so I am definitely grateful to have bought it last year!
This salad here is based on a recipe from the book. I have changed a few ingredients and added Raw Onion Rings to it, which I think go very well with it, adding some crunchiness to the whole dish.
Kale is actually one of the healthiest foods on the planet and from all the super greens, kale is king. It contains antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin K, beta-carotene & minerals. If you are curious to learn more about kale’s benefits, there are plenty of interesting articles on kale to be found online, including this one here for example: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-proven-benefits-of-kale.
Kale and other leafy greens such as spinach, collard greens, swiss chard, turnip greens, mustard greens, beetroot greens, carrots greens, etc. are very important in our alimentation, yet many aren’t aware of it. Salads such as this one here are a great and simple way to integrate more greens to your diet.
Except for the raw onions rings which require dehydration and need to be prepared in advance, the green kale salad needs only about 15-20 minutes to prepare and to be ready for serving.
Enjoy preparing it at home and please leave a comment if you liked it. I would be very happy to hear your feedback.
- 2 bunches kale
- 1/2 cup dried currants/ raisins/ chopped dates
- 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
- salt & pepper
- 1/2 shallot, minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 fresh thyme springs, leafs stripped from the sterms
- 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
- finely grated zest & juice from 1 lime/lemon
- 1 tbsp maple syrup / other sweetener of choice
- 1/2 cup cold pressed olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2-3 white onions
- 1/4 cup flax seeds, finely grounded
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds, finely grounded
- 2 tbsp black sesame
- 2 tbsp white sesame
- 1/4 tsp himalayan salt
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tbsp date paste ( from 2 dates)/ 1tbsp of other sweetener of your choice
- 11/4 cup almond milk
- Add all ingredients for the vinnaigrete in a jar and mix until well combined. Set aside.
- Raw kale can be tough, so the key here is to treat it right. To achieve a silky texture you should cut the kale very finely, just like confetti. Lay each kale leaf upside down on a cutting board and cut down both sides of the center rib to remove it. Stack a few leaves at a time, roll them into a tight cigar shape, and cut crosswise into very thin ribbons.
- Put the shredded kale in a colander or salad spinner and rinse well with cold water. Drain and dry well.
- Combine the kale, currants, and pine nuts in a mixing bowl. Drizzle the salad with the vinaigrette and season with salt and pepper. Gently toss with your hands to dress the salad evenly. and let stand for 10 minutes.
- Peel the onions and cut them lengthwise about 1 cm thick.
- Prepare the batter by grinding flax & sunflower seeds into a flour using a food processor or a high speed blender. Pour flour in a bowl and set aside.
- Using the same blender mix the almond milk with the date paste. Add almond date milk to the seeds flour bowl and the rest of the ingredients mixing all until well combined. Add a bit more water if batter is too thick. Dip the onion rings one by one into the batter and then place them on a dehydrator sheet. Dehydrate at 40C for about 12h or until crispy.
- Enjoy!:)
- If you don't have a dehydrator you can also use the oven at 50C with the oven door slightly open.
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