I did it.
I tried something new in the way of food.

I am usually pretty good in the food department.  Comes from loving to eat I guess, but there are some things in this world that I had not tried yet and Kale was one of them.

I discarded it as a ‘healthy-therefore-it-must-taste-awful’ vegetable.  But I admit when I am wrong and today is one of those days.

Kale isn’t just a healthy vegetable – it is a Super-Duper Healthy Vegetable that has the power to lower cholesterol better than Doctor prescribed medicines (if you want, you can read more of the benefits here) and has a very low GI index which is a boon for diabetics.

So I decided yesterday to buy some Kale and give it a whirl.  Since I had no idea how to cook/prepare it, I googled Kale recipes and found a basic recipe to test drive with some quinoa (another Super Food!).

I must say, I was impressed with the taste as initially, it doesn’t look like something you would want to eat…..like eating the  leaves off the outside of a cauliflower plant, only with curly fringes.  But the taste is similar to broccoli, mild and depending on when it is picked, can be bitter (early in the season) or sweet (allowed to stay in the ground well after frost hits).

But the salad I made turned out fantastic, of course, it contained avocados (another super food) and if you put avocados in or on anything, it will taste even better.  So now I am a Kale fan and will hunt down other recipes as well as do some experiments of my own.

Perhaps I will have to be brave with other food types that I currently shun i.e. oysters, mussels – uh, nope, forget those.  You can wrap those things up in chocolate and I still wouldn’t eat them.  I will stick to weird looking fruit and veggies…like Dragon Fruit, I have always loved the look of Dragon Fruit.

Oh…You want the recipe for the above yummy looking salad?  Keep scrolling down….

Kale, Quinoa and Avocado Salad

Ingredients

2 Cups roughly chopped Kale
1 Avocado, halved and sliced *
3/4 cup chopped Cucumber
1/2 cup chopped Bell Pepper (any colour)
1/4 cup chopped Green Onions
1 Cup cooked Quinoa (see tip below)
1/4 cup Olive Oil
3 Tbsp fresh squeezed Lemon Juice
1 1/2 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Steam kale for 3 minutes on high in a microwave safe bowl with 1/2 cup water; remove, drain and divide Kale evenly among two plates.

2. Divide cooked Quinoa in half and place on top of the Kale, top with remaining veggies.  Add avocado slices sprinkled with additional lemon juice to  keep from browning.

3. In a small bowl, whisk oil, dijon mustard and lemon juice, add salt and pepper to taste and pour over the salad.

Dig in!

Makes 2 servings

(Tip for cooking Quinoa, use chicken, turkey or veggie broth for more flavour!)