Are you trying to eat more Kale but the texture, color and taste are really throwing you off? Have you tried a range of recipes but still have not found the “right” one for you?  Well, we think that we may have found the “perfect” Kale recipe, one you will actually eat, enjoy and plan to make again.

We are enjoying it soo much, that we have given it a fun name: Kale Yeah!

The salad is basically Kale leafs tossed in yummy guacamole and WOW is it good! The recipe below is one we are making on a weekly basis, and we hope that you enjoy it too.  Feel free to use this as a general guideline and modify the salad as you wish. Sometimes we do not include the onions, (or add too many…eeks!) or we will add in some cooked vegetables to the Kale salad for the lunch box. We also LOVE to add toasted almonds or pumpkin seeds for some added crunch to the salad… the possibilities are endless, right??

You know the drill:  experiment, relax and enjoy!

 Kale Yeah! Salad

What you need:

• ½ bag of Trader Joe’s Kale (depending on how many you need to feed)
• 1 large avocado
• 1-2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• Tbls of kosher salt
• A splash of Apple Cider Vinegar (1 tablespoon)
• Two cups of cherry tomatoes, halved
• ¼ to ½ a red onion small diced (depending on your taste and the size of the onion)
• 1/2 cup of shredded carrots (buy ready made from Trader Joe’s)
• Optional: Nuts or toasted pumpkin seeds for crunch

What you do:

Cut the stems out of the kale. You only want to use the soft leafy parts of the kale. Cut any super large leafs in smaller pieces. We sorta “rough chop” the Kale, just so it is more bite-sized.

I like to heap the chopped Kale onto a pan to keep it from getting all over the counter(and floor etc..)

Set the kale aside. Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half set them aside. Dice the onion set it aside. If you buy the shredded carrots from Trader Joes we recommend cutting the strands in half or thirds to make them easier to eat.

Dice the Red Onions as fine (small) as you can. You may want to sharpen your knife just before you start.

Now that all of your parts are ready,  it is time to have some fun.

1. Make the Avocado Dressing:

In a large bowl add the salt and the splash of Apple Cider Vinegar and Olive Oil. Cut the avocado in half, remove the pit, and add the avocado to the bowl. With both very clean hands dive right in and start mixing the salt, vinegar, olive oil and avocado together, mashing the avocado as you go.

The start of the Avocado Salad Dressing, Kale Yeah!

Once ingredients are mixed together add in the kale. The kale can be wily so start by pressing the kale down and into the avocado mixture. Kneed, rub, and massage the kale into the avocado until the avocado is lump-less and each kale leaf is nicely coated with the avocado dressing.

Now, add in the rest of your salad ingredients. First add  the carrots and the onions; massage, coat, and mix in the carrots and onions into the salad. When you are satisfied that they are nicely coated with the  avocado mixture, add in the tomatoes. Still using your hands lightly toss and mix the tomatoes into the salad. You only need to coat the tomatoes with the avocado mixture and blend them into the salad so be mindful not to smash or mash the tomatoes.

We recommend serving the salad with roasted almonds or pumpkin seeds for a protein, crunch, and color. But don’t worry even without the nuts this salad is delish.

The finished Kale Yeah! Salad

There are many reasons why we love this Kale Yeah! salad, but one that you might appreciate as well, is the fact that you can make this salad one day, and (if you make enough) you can eat it for lunch for 2 or 3 days!

Let us know what you think about our Kale Yeah! Salad. You can leave a comment below or on Facebook!

P.S. For those of you who have emailed asking about my knives, Let me just say that I LOVE this knife! I have used in exclusively since 2005 or 2006 and can’t say enough good things about it. It has a “grippy” handle to keep you steady when you cut, it is only 7 inches long (so not too big), and yet there is a deep blade to allow you to cut, chop and use the knife like those huge chef’s knives.  Click the link to read more about this knife 🙂