Kale Sweet Potato Tahini Salad
Guys, I love this kale sweet potato tahini salad. No, I mean I really love it. Like, I'm in love.
We've only met a couple months ago, but this salad is so amazing and bounteous, and who are we kidding - attractive - that things have moved really fast. Honestly, I can't get enough of this salad. No seriously, I ate the entire SERVING bowl yesterday. Yes, that humongous bowl you see right above and below these words. I ate all of it. I did leave over a few sweet potato cubes for everyone else though, because I'm just so selfless.
This is a very trendy salad too. Kale - check. Roasted sweet potatoes - check. Pumpkin seeds - check. Tahini dressing - check. Yep, it passes the cool-enough-to-bring-to-a-dinner-party test. And the delicious-enough test.
All the above mentioned components come together to form the most magnificent, super-nutritious, good-looking, scrumptious kale salad. Oh, and did I mention it's incredibly easy to make too?
You know how some recipes make you massage the kale? Ha - NO. Aint nobody got time for that.
The first time I made this salad, I sautéd the kale for a minute to soften it. And I was left with literally an 1/8 of the amount of kale I started with. Because it shrinks. So much. Just like when you cook spinach. So yes, perhaps sautéing lettuce-type vegetables can be an effective and easy way of ingesting a respectable amount of leafy greens, but it's definitely not useful when you have a crowd to serve and you just spent a nice little while cleaning a high mound of kale, only to be left with a shriveled little pile.
So, the second time I made this kale salad, I didn't sauté the kale. Or massage it. Or even pour the dressing on early to let the kale sit and soften in it. I simply combined all the components and drizzled the dressing on the salad right before serving. And it was delicious. And not bitter. And not tough. And I had as much kale to serve as the amount I started out with. And ever since then, I have used raw, un-massaged, un-marinated, and un-sautéd kale in my salads.
Now, I know some self-proclaimed health expert will tell you that raw kale is bad for you. Eh. It's the same as eating raw broccoli or spinach. Maybe just don't eat a whole serving bowl (oops) every day. Otherwise, I say you're fine (says the self-proclaimed non-health expert).
The dressing for this salad is a combination of tahini and olive oil, with some vinegar, lemon juice, and spices added to give it just the right amount of tang and zest. Tahini has made its debut once before on this blog, but not in the form of a salad. Tahini has been featured on the blog as a component of a cookie. Yes, tahini cookies. They're incredible. If you buy a jar of tahini for this salad, go ahead and make the tahini cookies while you're at it.
It'll be a tahini party, baby. My type of soiree. Please invite me. Please?
kale sweet potato tahini salad
Yield: One large bowl
1 big bunch kale
2-3 sweet potatoes
Olive oil
Salt
Pumpkin seeds (or sunflower seeds)
Tahini Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
6 tablespoons tahini
3 tablespoons vinegar (white or apple cider)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
Water for thinning (may not need, depends on thickness of tahini)
Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Cube the sweet potatoes (I leave the peel on), drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast for 30 minutes, or until soft.
Meanwhile, rinse kale and rip leaves off from the stem (I don't massage or sauté my kale). Place into serving bowl.
Whisk together tahini dressing. Dilute with water if it's too strong or thick.
When sweet potatoes are ready, arrange on top of the kale. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds over everything, and drizzle dressing over salad last. Serve right away.
Alternatively, you can prepare all the ingredients in advance, leave them separate, and assemble and dress right before serving.
On a completely unrelated note, MEEEE:
photo from memes dot com
