Easy Kale Salad

Fresh green salad served with large wooden spoons.

This easy kale salad is full of color and nutrients! It's loaded with carrots, cabbage, chickpeas, mushrooms, parsley and walnuts, all tossed together in a homemade dressing. Enjoy it as-is or use it as a healthy base for your favorite proteins!

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Prep Time 15

Marinating time 15

Total Time 30

Servings servings

Calories 464

Author Kim

Ingredients

For the salad:

1 bunch kale washed and chopped well
2 large carrots peeled and diced
2 cups red cabbage chopped
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas) rinsed and drained
6 large mushrooms wiped clean and chopped
1 cup curly parsley chopped
1 1/4 cup walnuts chopped and toasted

For the dressing:

2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
2/3 cup olive oil
ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

For the dressing: Peel and chop garlic very finely. Sprinkle salt on garlic and using the side of your knife or the back of a spoon, mash the garlic into a paste using the salt as an abrasive. Place garlic and salt into the bottom of a salad dressing container or small bowl.
Stir in maple syrup, tarragon and vinegar. Add oil in a constant stream while whisking, or if you’re using a container with a lid, pour it all in and shake it up. You want to emulsify the dressing, or suspend the oil in the other ingredients so it’s evenly mixed. It’ll look sort of creamy when it’s emulsified. Taste and add more salt and pepper to your liking.
Prepare kale leaves by removing any thick ribs. Rinse and dry with paper towels or run through a salad spinner to dry well. Working in batches on a cutting board, gather and bunch kale leaves together and thinly slice or chop into very small pieces. Transfer kale to a very large bowl. Add some of the dressing to the kale by itself first and toss it all together really well to coat all of the leaves. You can even do this with your hands and “massage” the dressing in so that all of the kale is well coated. For best results, let the dressed kale sit for at least 15 minutes before adding the other toppings so that it soaks up all of the flavor and softens the leaves a bit. Gently toss in the rest of the ingredients and the remaining dressing (or as much of it as you prefer). Toss well to evenly coat. Serve and enjoy within a few hours.

Notes

Storing leftovers: Kale salad that has been tossed with dressing can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Meal prep: To make ahead, store the kale, toppings, and dressing separately.

Storing kale: Kale is hearty and can be washed, cut and dried in advance. Store the leaves, wrapped in a paper towel in a zip-top plastic bag for up to 3 days.

Dressing: Store the dressing in a jar with a lid and it will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Nutrition