The homemade lemon dressing is also so easy to make with a handful of ingredients, making this salad so vibrant and bright. The best part is the kale is quite hearty, so the leftover kale salad keeps well in the fridge, unlike most dressed salads. It’s great for making ahead of time, especially during the busy holiday season. Need some main dish ideas for what to serve this salad with? Try my roast chicken recipe, turkey recipe, or stuffed peppers recipe.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Lemon juice — I highly recommend using fresh lemon juice for the salad dressing. Bottled lemon juice has preservatives that make the juice taste not as fresh, bright, or flavorful. Olive oil — use a good quality olive oil as it is the base of your salad dressing. If you’re not a fan of olive oil, you can use avocado oil instead. Kale — I use curly kale, which can be slightly bitter, so you must massage it thoroughly. Curly kale is dark green and curly with a slightly peppery taste. Dried cranberries — I love the perfect blend of sweet and tart that dried cranberries add to the kale salad. Almonds — I use toasted almonds as toasting them provides a crunchier texture and enhances their nutty flavor. Parmesan — parmesan adds a nutty, rich, and tangy taste to the salad. I recommend using freshly grated parmesan for the best flavor compared to pre-grated cheese.
How to Make Kale Salad
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper. Drizzle in the olive oil, while whisking. Set aside.
- Strip the kale leaves from the stems, pulling them off or cutting the rib off. Make small bundles of the leaves, roll them up, and slice them into thin strips.
- Add the chopped kale to the bowl. Toss the kale in the dressing, massaging it a bit with clean hands or tongs as you toss it, until well coated. Add the cheese, almonds, and cranberries.
- Toss to combine the kale salad.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
If desired, add a cup of other sliced vegetables or fruit to the salad, like radishes, apples, or carrots.I love using curly kale for this salad because the leaves make a pretty presentation, but lacinato (dinosaur) kale will also work very well. Lacinato kale has crinkled-looking leaves and is slightly sweeter than other kale varieties.If you’re not a fan of dried cranberries, you can swap them for regular or golden raisins. Dried apricots are great as well.You can swap out the almonds for other nuts like pecans or walnuts.If you do not have parmesan cheese, you can use cheddar cheese, feta cheese, or goat cheese.Make sure to rinse the kale thoroughly before you use it. Use a salad spinner or pat dry the kale afterward to keep it crisp.
If you’ve tried this Kale Salad recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
