Can you say fall classic? This hearty and warming kale and apple salad is sure to become one of your favorite seasonal salads, just right for a chilly evening.
Serves: 4
Difficulty: easy
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Diet: GF
Ingredients
For spiced pecans
8 oz pecan halves
2 T honey
2 T safflower oil
½ t curry powder
¼ t cayenne pepper
¼ t ground ginger (dried)
¼ t salt
For the salad
2 green apples, cored, wedged
2 T safflower oil
1 lb kale
8 oz bacon
1 t sugar
2 T rice vinegar
3 T lemon juice
1/3 c extra virgin olive oil
¼ t salt
¼ t black pepper, ground
Steps
For the spiced pecans
Preheat oven to 375°. Combine nuts with honey, safflower oil, curry powder, cayenne, ginger, salt and spread evenly on parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake 8 min until lightly toasted. Let cool, stirring every few minutes to prevent clumping. When room temp, store in airtight container until ready to use.
For the salad
Preheat oven to 350°. Cut apple wedges in half and toss with 2 T safflower oil; spread onto parchment-lined sheet pan. Roast 8 min. Cool and set aside until ready to assemble salad.
Wash kale and remove leaves from large stems. In a large sauté pan cook the bacon over medium heat until lightly crisp. Remove bacon and discard all but 1 T of bacon fat in pan.
Deglaze pan with sugar, vinegar, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. When simmering, add kale to pan, tossing just until lightly warmed and wilted. Transfer to salad plates, arranging apples and bacon over kale. Sprinkle with pecans, drizzle any pan juices over, season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
