by Ann McCulloh
It’s easy, yummy, low-carb and there’s no foil-lined bag to throw away.
Kale is prolific, cold-hardy and very ornamental.
It’s so full of nutrients that it’s consistently included in lists of the Top Ten most nutritious foods. Crispy kale chips are a revelation – a delicately crunchy treat that have replaced potato chips in my almost-paleo diet.
Crispy Kale Chips Recipe:
Take 1 bunch of curly kale greens. Wash and dry very thoroughly. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Tear kale leaves from the midrib,
rub gently all over with olive oil and then sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.
It’s easy to overdo the salt, so just a touch-you can add more later. Adding fresh garlic to the oil, or a grind of fresh black pepper are fun and easy variations. Spread the pieces loosely on a foil-lined cookie sheet and toast for 10-12 minutes in the oven. It’s best to use several cookie sheets to avoid crowding the chips. Leaves will get crisp and just browned at tips.
You may need to remove the most-browned ones from the edges, and put the pan back in the over for another minute to crisp the ones in the middle of the pan.
I chop the leftover center ribs, and add them to my next stir fry or batch of sautéed greens. You can even freeze them if you aren’t using them right away.
Love the idea of adding garlic to the oil and seasoning with black pepper!
you can also add the kale rib to a stockpot of vegetables to keep to make soup. You can add any vegetable discard to the stock. Onion out skins – in they go. Carrot tops? in they go. You get the idea.