Amazing Red Kale from our CSA
Like most people who have tried homemade kale chips, I’m hooked. I previously had put it in soup and loved it there but who am I kidding – lighting coating it in olive oil and Maldon Salt will always win. I have read other blogs and heard people talking about these and they say that they are like potato chips. I disagree. They are salty and crispy but they do taste like kale, but only in the best sense. When they are in the oven the steam coming out of the vent does smell a little cabbagy and not in the best way. The only thing I can say is try them and you will love them. If you don’t like them you only wasted 30 minutes of your time and a few dollars on some produce. It is well worth the effort. If you are a skeptic prepare to be surprised.
My CSA farmer, Candace (Transpire Organic) put the general instructions on the order form for Bailey’s Local Foods because she sells some of her veggies there too. I read about them somewhere but when I saw the suggestion on Bailey’s I just ran with it. The basic instructions for this are: wash kale, dry the kale, lightly coat in olive oil, sprinkle with salt and then bake. I used a salad spinner the first time I made these but I hate digging it out of the cupboard (I need to drag out a stool), so this time I used paper towel. The same principle of making a salad stands with this. Dry greens means the oil will stick. I’m not patient enough to give each piece of kale lots of room on the pan so I tend to crown them. This means that some will be done before others. I just pick out the fully crisp ones, turn the partially soft pieces over and put them back in the oven for a few more minutes. I keep doing this until they are all crisp and in the mean time, I snack on the pieces that are ready.
I find this to be a very filling snack. When Simon and I had it on Saturday afternoon, I hadn’t had lunch but this was good enough for me. I offered a chip to Tim but I got a firm “No Mummy,” as a reply. I wasn’t surprised but can you blame me for being hopeful?
I am looking forward to making this again soon. Candace didn’t have any this week at the CSA pick-up but I’m hoping she will next week.
Kale ready for the oven
Crispy Red Kale Chips fresh from the oven
Crispy Red Kale Chips
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb of red kale
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp Maldon Salt less if you are using a fine salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and get two baking sheets out. I line mine with parchment paper but that is optional.
- Cut the tough rib off the back of the kale leaf by holding the leaf on its side, holding the two halves of the curly part together and slice the rib off the length of the leaf.
- Cut or tear the large leaf into pieces.
- Wash the leaves and then dry them in a salad spinner or with paper towel.
- Put the dry, washed leaves in a large bowl and toss them with the olive oil to coat.
- Sprinkle them with salt to your taste and toss to make sure they all have oil and salt.
- Spread them onto the baking sheets and bake at 375 degrees F for 10-12 minutes.
- After 10 minutes take the pans out of the oven and put the crispy pieces in a bowl to serve. Check all of the pieces and any that have soft spots still, turn them over and place them back in the oven for another 3 minutes. You will want to make sure that the whole piece of kale is crispy. Repeat this until all the pieces are crispy - remove fully crisp and put soft ones back in the oven.
These are my new favourite snack. I also couldn’t believe how filling they were :-).