We grow several types of kale – the curly Winterbor and Vates, long wavy lacinato which is also known as toscano and dinosaur kale, Dwarf Scotch Curled, Siberian, and a new gardener developed Beedy’s Camden.
Kale is great in white bean soup. It is also a healthy addition to juice.
The curly kale makes great kale chips, though Martha Stewart used the long lacinato for chips she could stand up in a jar. Preheat the oven to 300. Tear the leaves off the stems and pile them on a cookie sheet. Pour olive oil and balsamic vinegar over it and toss/rub it so all the leaves are covered. Spread out close to single layer. It takes twenty to thirty minutes for them to be at that perfect point where they are almost crisp in the oven and really crisp up once out of the oven. I used to bake them at 400 but burnt too many. It may take you a couple tries with your oven to find your timing, but kale chips make a good, healthy snack. I do two cookie sheets at a time.
My favorite is la
cinato kale. Emeril has a nice recipe for Kale with Caramelized Onions on the FoodNetwork. I usually start some oil in the skillet and toss in some garlic. When the garlic softens I chop the kale, stems and all, usually just in 1 inch strips across the leaf and stem, and toss in. Stir around to get them just heated through and a little soft. I enjoy mine barely cooked, with still a little crunch. If you read many of the recipes you will read over and over – if it gets olive green it is way overdone.
I like to saute or lightly steam some kale in a skillet, then crack in some eggs and stir around for scrambled eggs with kale. Or if I really want KALE, then I saute a lot of it, probably with some garlic and salt, then hollow out little holes for a couple eggs and crop them in for sunny side up eggs in a bed of kale.
Kale with Fresh Ginger, from Kilpatrick Family Farms
Note – this is for “fresh” ginger like we grow on our farms and freeze for long term use, not the hard-skinned stuff you buy in stores.
1 bunch kale, cut into bite-size pieces
2 Tbsp fresh ginger, sliced thinly (leave whole when slicing so they are round and beautiful in the dish when finished)
1 tsp soy sauce
olive oil for cooking
Saute kale in olive oil until just bright green (the pan will be relatively hot). Add ginger and cook one more minute, stirring kale and ginger together. Add soy sauce to deglaze the pan and stir vigorously to coat the kale and ginger with soy sauce, about 30 seconds. Serve hot. We serve this over fish, grilled chicken, brown rice, or as a vegetable on the side.
Need more ideas? Head over to 365 Days of Kale for great recipes.
