Grilled Kale Recipe

I don’t associate grilling with summertime.  I suppose part of it is that I’m kind of a winter person, and I’d rather not stand by a fire when I’m already burning up, but it’s also because winter is the only time my Dad would send me out to check on steaks so he wouldn’t have to.  There was a mat by our kitchen door that almost always had a pair of my shoes on it because I was running in and out of the house so much. But at any rate, I suppose that’s why I’m digging up so-called “summer cooking” recipes in late October.

Also, the store was out of asparagus, so I decided to finally try this Bon Apetit magazine recipe for Grilled Kale Salad, with plums and ricotta.  Of course, I don’t really like plums and ricotta, so I modified it a bit – it’s maybe too easy.

The start is pretty much the same – 3 tsp extra virgin olive oil, 3 tsp balsalmic vinegar, 1 tsp honey, and I just tossed in a few dashes of italian seasoning I already had on hand, mixed in a small bowl for a vinegarette.

Then you brush a few large kale leaves with olive oil and sprinkle them with a touch of salt, and grill them on a hot grill for 2 or 3 minutes.  Remove the bigger, tougher stems as needed.  The leaves will be nice and crispy, but not chewy like kale has a tendency to be.

That’s it.  To dress it up a bit, I added some chunks of fresh, creamy chevre (or “goat cheese”, as I called it until I shopped for this recipe) and a fancy trail mix from Whole Foods called “Sahale Snacks“, with candied pecans and dried cranberries.  You could, alternatively, just use candied pecans and dried cranberries, but this stuff is pretty good.

It’s really really good. Give it a shot and let me know what you think.