Kale
 

Does anyone have any new ways to prepare kale? I love it just boiled with an onion thrown in for flavor.

I searched for recipes but the only ones I could find had so many other ingredients in them that the kale was virtually nonexistent!

I did find one recipe that I tried and was very surprised to find that it was good! A really neat and different snack.

Here's the recipe:

1 bag Kale, chopped and washed
2 tsp. extra light virgin olive oil
Salt (Optional)
Parchment Paper
Large Baking Sheet

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spin the kale in a salad spinner to remove all traces of moisture.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the kale out in an even layer.

Drizzle with olive oil and toss so it's all coated.

Place in preheated oven for 12-22 minutes. Check after 12 minutes. If it's not crispy yet return it to the oven and cook in increments of 2 minutes, checking to make sure it's not burning. If it burns it will taste bitter.

Once kale is crispy transfer to a paper towel. Sprinkle with sale to taste or just leave as is. Snack on it just like you would chips. Be careful.....the leaves are delicate and will crush easily.

It's really very good....if you like kale!

Hi Kitty,
I don't think I've ever eaten kale, but I was just looking at a site with nutritional information about it and it sounds very good for you.

Kale - The King of Vegetables

I'm not sure I've ever seen it here in the vegetable shops but maybe some at the farmer's markets. Sometimes I really crave greens so this one would be great if I can find it.

thanks

Back in the day when I could still eat cabbage I used to cook it
with garlic and chicken broth, but not totally...so it would be still crunchy. I loved it that way.

But something has happened to me regarding the cabbage family...and even Beano will not fix it. Too much gas...and with my twisted intestines I just cannot handle that anymore! sigh.

I'm just looking at a few local gardening sites right now. I don't know that it would be suited to my sub-tropical climate if I wanted to grow it myself, although I've grown kohl rabi (sp?) and spinach in winter a long time ago.

If kale is in the same family as cabbage I don't know that I can eat it either. About a year ago I started getting really sore joints after eating cabbage. I love cabbage in a stirfry. I stopped eating it for ages to try a little test but the next time I ate it the same thing happened. weird.

Just recently I decided to try wombok (chinese cabbage) instead but had same problem. Any idea why I would get sore joints from eating cabbage do you?

http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s1866667.htm
Plant Profile: Brassica

I've heard of joint pain from citrus foods. But not cruciferious veggies. But I think anything is possible. Heavy ingestion of cruciferious veggies has been linked to low thyroid effects. They may also complex out zinc from your diet at that meal making it unavailable for absorption.

I can't tolerate nightshades either...no potatoes, and very little tomato in my life now....otherwise my feet and skin burn.

thanks.

I think it's really weird too because I always thought cabbage was good for the joints. lol Maybe I've just eaten too much of it.

P.S. Sorry to have hi-jacked your kale thread with talk of my aching joints, Kitty. ;)

I just learned some really interesting things though and I think I've maybe been blaming the humble cabbage all this time, when in fact it could be a number of other vegetables causing the problem.

No need to apologize! :) We can all learn something from this conversation. And hey, how much can someone talk about kale! :p

Food sensitivities (I've learned) are common and much more common as we age. Something you might have tolerated well years ago might bother you today.

Mrs. D is a wealth of information so please carry on the discussion. It's interesting!

As far as I know, Lara... kale and cabbage and other cruciferious veggies are cold/cool loving plants. Don't know if you can grow in warmer latitudes.

But there is a compromise. Melody here, whom you know, grows various sprouts in her home. These are very nutritious and I am just starting to do them myself. If you search "sprouts" you'll find her posts. Some are mixed into other forums... so you may need to do a more general search.

I bought a jar with screened lid at a store last weekend and some alfalfa seeds... to get started soon. Also over Xmas I got a 3 tier sprouter for $11.00. There are huge benefits from these and you can do broccoli sprouts (for the nutritional punch) and others for flavors you prefer.

It is fast and economical and doesn't require outside efforts.
There are several places online with seeds, but I don't know what you have over there where you are.

I am planning to put them in sandwiches to start, and slowly get hubby to accept them. He is not good with "new food"... ;)

mrsD, you're right... too hot here and too humid too and it wasn't spinach I grew in winter, it was silver beet.

I remember very well all the sprouting. lol :D Excellent idea. I'll check those old posts. Will get me motivated. I used to have a sprouting tray. I should hunt that down again. I love sprouts, but I don't like old ones that the supermarkets sell so it's rare I buy them anymore because I end up throwing 3/4 of them out.

Kitty, I decided to do a search for "macrobiotics and kale", and I found lots of great sites and recipes.

Thanks for the site recommendations, Lara. I cooked the remainder of the bag I already had yesterday....so now I have kale to last me for a while! :rolleyes: I'll be sick of it before I finish it. But.....it's a good source of iron and I need that.

I can't wait for summer fruits and veggies to become abundant. I love summer produce so much more than winter. Might explain why it's so much easier for me to lose weight in the summer. :o