Kale Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette and Maple Pecans
The secret to making this a delicious salad is to massage the vinaigrette into the leaves of kale an hour before serving. It gives the leaves time to soften and absorb some of the dressing and makes them much more palatable to eat raw. Feel free to change up the roasted vegetables to suit your liking.
Serves 4
1 large bunch kale
1/3 cup olive oil
¼ cup walnut or hazelnut oil, or olive oil
¼ cup blueberry jam
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp maple syrup
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
3 small-medium beets, peeled
2 small sweet potatoes – the organic kind
BBQ seasoning, such as www.beakitchenhero.com Rusty Sled
10-12 Brussels sprouts
1 tsp dried summer savoury leaves, not ground
1 cup pecan halves
¼ cup maple syrup
Maldon sea salt or other large flake salt
1 small carrot
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1 cup blueberries or saskatoon berries
¼ of a red onion, thinly sliced
2 grilled chicken breasts, or leftover steak or pulled pork, or tofu
Whisk together the olive oil, walnut oil, blueberry jam, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, garlic, and salt and pepper.
Rinse the kale and pat dry. Dip the kale leaves into the dressing. Holding the kale over a large bowl, massage the dressing into the leaves with your fingers. Watch, the dressing with splatter. As you work, tear the leaves off the stems and into bite size pieces. Continue with all the leaves ensuring that you reserve about 3-4 tbsp of dressing. Set aside the kale for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°F. Cut the beets in half lengthwise and then cut each half into 3-4 wedges. Toss with some oil and salt and pepper. Transfer to an aluminium foil lined cookie sheet, leaving room on the tray for the sweet potato and brussels sprouts.
Cut the sweet potato in half lengthwise and cut each half into 4 wedges. If you are using a really large sweet potato, you may wish to cut it into large chunks instead. Toss with oil and some BBQ or all-purpose seasoning (I like www.beakitchenhero.com Rusty Sled.) Transfer to the cookie sheet, ensuring that the sweet potatoes are separate from the beets.
Peel away the outer leaves of the brussels sprouts and discard. Trim the ends. Cut in half lengthwise. Toss with some oil and the summer savoury leaves and season with salt. Transfer to the cookie sheet. You should have three separate areas on the baking sheet with vegetables. Bake for about 30 minutes, until tender.
Line a small ovenproof tray with parchment paper. Add the pecans and ¼ cup maple syrup and toss well. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the maple syrup is bubbly and the pecans are starting to brown, stirring half way through. Remove to a wire rack and sprinkle the pecans with some Maldon salt. Set aside to cool completely.
Thinly slice the carrot.
To serve, place a mound of kale leaves on each plate. Top with some of the roasted vegetables, some sliced carrots, sliced red onion and slices of chicken. Scatter over some pomegranate seeds and blueberries. Drizzle with about 1 tbsp of the dressing and top with some maple pecans.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL has suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
New charges for Ont. woman who previously admitted to defrauding doulas
The Brantford, Ont. woman who was previously sentenced to house arrest after admitting to deceiving doulas has been charged again in connection to a new victim.