Salad in November? Absolutely. Warm roasted vegetables bring health and comfort to dinner on a chilly evening, but it can also be refreshing to wake up your palate with a vibrant, crunchy salad.
This one really pops with tart, bright flavors from cilantro, lime juice, and Granny Smith apple, and the hearty kale provides a robust base. Feel free to make it your own: Use purple cabbage to add contrasting color, swap out peanuts for pistachios, or toss in a handful of dried cranberries. Feta cheese adds a nice creaminess, but you can omit or use less depending on your dietary preferences or other components of your meal.
Enjoy another helping of salad knowing that you’re getting plenty of nutrients in each bite. Kale and cabbage are cruciferous veggies: mainstays of PCF Recipe Club due to their high glucosinolate content. These naturally-occurring compounds, once absorbed in the body, have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. With an assortment of veggies, an apple, nuts, and seeds, this salad is packed with fiber. The fat in the nuts and seeds, not to mention the extra-virgin olive oil, is mostly unsaturated “good fat” and will help you absorb fat-soluble vitamins.
Winter Crunch Salad
Prep time:
Serves: 5-6
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1 large bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- 1/4 c. lime juice
- 1/2 tsp. honey
- 1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil
- Pinch of cumin, optional
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Salad
- 1 (10 to 12-oz.) bunch lacinato kale, chopped or torn into small pieces
- 1/4 small green or purple cabbage, chopped
- 1 Granny Smith apple, diced, about ¼”
- 3 Persian or kirby cucumbers, diced, about ¼”
- 2 stalks celery, diced, about ¼”
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup roasted and unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup roasted and unsalted seeds (such as sunflower or pumpkin)
- 3 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (optional)
- Kosher salt
Directions:
Make the dressing: Add cilantro, garlic, lime juice, and honey to a food processor or blender. Blend until the cilantro has been chopped, then slowly stream in the olive oil until dressing reaches the desired consistency. Season to taste with cumin, if using, and salt and pepper.
Make the salad: Add kale to a large bowl along with a pinch of salt (omit if you are limiting sodium). Massage kale for 1 to 2 minutes until all the leaves are slightly darkened and have softened a bit. Add cabbage, apple, cucumber, celery, scallions, peanuts, seeds, and feta (if using). Pour desired amount of dressing over the salad and toss.
Adapted from Delish.com.