Kale Salad with Wild Rice, Dried Cherries, and Almonds
I like a tasty kale salad from time to time to get a nice hearty dose of greens. This salad keeps really well in the fridge for several days, which is great for when you're cooking for one.
First, get your rice going. I used a blend of wild rice and brown rice, though just about any other grains will do. I have used quinoa several times, and millet once, but I like the variation with rice a lot!
While the rice is cooking, prep everything else. Rinse your kale and tear the leaves from the stalks, then tear the leaves into bite-size pieces.
Toast some almonds in the oven, on the stovetop, or in the microwave. Just get them nice and brown, and then chop them into smallish pieces.
Chop up some dried cherries as well, and whatever type of onions you want to use. I had some pickled red onions leftover from another recipe so I used those, but the green onions called for by the original recipe are great here as well.
Once your rice has cooked, let it cool for a bit on a plate in the fridge, then add it to the rest of the salad and mix!
Next time, I will probably increase the dressing a little bit more. The cherries and onions add a lot of flavor, but the leftover salad can be a little dry. In any case, it is very tasty, and somewhat nutritious!
Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen
For the salad:
1/4 cup wild rice, uncooked
1/4 cup brown rice, uncooked
1 bunch kale (I used curly, and my bunch weighed about 11 oz)
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup pickled red onions (a few green onions would work great here too)
For the dressing:
3 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
3-4 tsp mustard, dijon is nice
1/2 tsp honey
1 1/2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
Salt to taste
First, get the rice started. Put both brown and wild rice in a pot and cover with 1 2/3 cup water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and let simmer for 45 minutes. Mine was well-cooked after 45 minutes, in fact, the brown rice was maybe a little overcooked. Drain any excess water (I had a little), and scoop the rice onto a plate. Flatten it out as best you can, and place the plate in the refrigerator to cool.
While your rice is cooking, rinse the kale leaves and tear them from the stalks. Tear (or chop if you're feeling fancy) the leaves into bite-sized pieces, and place in a GIANT bowl.
You can also get your almonds toasting in a pan (or in the oven or microwave) while you wait for the rice. Be sure to shake the pan fairly often to get an even color. Chop up the toasted almonds, dried cherries, and onions, and add them to the bowl.
If you finish everything else and the rice is still cooking or chilling, make the dressing! Whisk the oil, mustard, honey, and vinegar together in a bowl, and add salt to taste.
Once your rice is relatively cool, add it to the bowl and toss. Add the dressing and toss several more times (this is so the rice doesn't soak up all the dressing right away). And you're done!
First, get your rice going. I used a blend of wild rice and brown rice, though just about any other grains will do. I have used quinoa several times, and millet once, but I like the variation with rice a lot!
While the rice is cooking, prep everything else. Rinse your kale and tear the leaves from the stalks, then tear the leaves into bite-size pieces.
Toast some almonds in the oven, on the stovetop, or in the microwave. Just get them nice and brown, and then chop them into smallish pieces.
Chop up some dried cherries as well, and whatever type of onions you want to use. I had some pickled red onions leftover from another recipe so I used those, but the green onions called for by the original recipe are great here as well.
While you're waiting for the rice to finish cooking, you can assemble everything else into a big bowl (and I mean a BIG bowl, mine wasn't quite big enough and things were flying everywhere). You can also make the dressing, which is a nice mustard-y vinaigrette (I forgot to take pictures of that part, oops).
Once your rice has cooked, let it cool for a bit on a plate in the fridge, then add it to the rest of the salad and mix!
Next time, I will probably increase the dressing a little bit more. The cherries and onions add a lot of flavor, but the leftover salad can be a little dry. In any case, it is very tasty, and somewhat nutritious!
Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen
For the salad:
1/4 cup wild rice, uncooked
1/4 cup brown rice, uncooked
1 bunch kale (I used curly, and my bunch weighed about 11 oz)
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup pickled red onions (a few green onions would work great here too)
For the dressing:
3 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
3-4 tsp mustard, dijon is nice
1/2 tsp honey
1 1/2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
Salt to taste
First, get the rice started. Put both brown and wild rice in a pot and cover with 1 2/3 cup water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and let simmer for 45 minutes. Mine was well-cooked after 45 minutes, in fact, the brown rice was maybe a little overcooked. Drain any excess water (I had a little), and scoop the rice onto a plate. Flatten it out as best you can, and place the plate in the refrigerator to cool.
While your rice is cooking, rinse the kale leaves and tear them from the stalks. Tear (or chop if you're feeling fancy) the leaves into bite-sized pieces, and place in a GIANT bowl.
You can also get your almonds toasting in a pan (or in the oven or microwave) while you wait for the rice. Be sure to shake the pan fairly often to get an even color. Chop up the toasted almonds, dried cherries, and onions, and add them to the bowl.
If you finish everything else and the rice is still cooking or chilling, make the dressing! Whisk the oil, mustard, honey, and vinegar together in a bowl, and add salt to taste.
Once your rice is relatively cool, add it to the bowl and toss. Add the dressing and toss several more times (this is so the rice doesn't soak up all the dressing right away). And you're done!
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