Raw Kale Avocado Salad « Happy Foody

Raw Kale Avocado Salad

February 12, 2008

Kale is an amazing food. You should eat lots and lots and lots of it. We’ve been eating it daily here…in the form of juice, smoothies, and salads. You can check out its awesome benefits and nutritional content here. Anytime you can avoid cooking something…it’s better. However, kale tends to be rather tough and stringy when raw. One of the most common raw recipes you’ll see out there is the raw kale and avocado salad. The mixture of salt and lemon juice essentially “cooks” the leaves and breaks them down enough to make it a delicious salad.

I first saw this recipe in Alissa Cohen’s cookbook, Living on Live Food…but you can find so many different versions of this salad across the web. I’ve adjusted the ingredients to my taste, but as always…tweak it to YOURS!

1 head kale, shredded (I prefer the taste of curly kale for this one)
1 cup tomato, chopped (fresh salsa is also delicious!)
1/2 avocado
1-2 tablespoons olive oil or hemp seed oil (go for less if you can)
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Celtic or Himalayan sea salt, to taste (1/4 - 1/2 t)
1/8 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
For extra yummy…add 1-2 sheets untoasted nori (snip up with scissors into little bits)
Optional toppings: raisins, pine nuts, hemp seed nuts, sesame seeds

Preparation

In mixing bowl, toss all ingredients together. Mush everything together (with hands) to created marinated/wilted effect on kale. This makes it much tastier and easier to digest.

Here is a great video by the raw food coach, Karen Knowler…demonstrating how to make this salad:

Entry Filed under: Fruits and Veggies, Kale, Raw, Salads. .

18 Comments Add your own

1. Deanna Riccardelli | February 12, 2008 at 2:44 am

We make the same recipe by Alissa. My husband always adds extra cayenne pepper to give it an extra kick. My girls eat this faster than ice cream and always ask for more. We have a friend who can keep us in constant supply of Kale….mmm mmm good!
2. livelightly | February 12, 2008 at 3:23 am

Ooooh….a constant supply of kale? I’m totally jealous! We are going through it like candy around here! Next time I will have to add the cayenne…I didn’t have it on hand, but I bet it really tastes great.
3. Cindy | February 12, 2008 at 12:46 pm

Here’s a kale recipe for kids (and grown ups) that Zach loves!

We try to buy Dinosaur Kale because the leaves are larger and not quite as curly. We cut the stems out of the middle and slice the leafy part into strips or squares. Then brush lightly with a little extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with a touch of sea salt and bake on a cookie sheet for no more than 10 minutes (start checking in on them at 8 minutes since ovens vary. You don’t want them charred but you do want them crisp.

We call them Dinosaur Chips and Zach will eat a whole bushel of kale at a time this way! YUM!
4. Anna | February 13, 2008 at 4:22 pm

I made this for lunch yesterday, though I didn’t put in tomato since I was out. Peyton loved it! He told me that he wants me to make it everyday. I am planning to go to Mama Jean’s tonight and will get kale and other yummy things that you’ve been blogging about. I’m loving your food blog these days.
5. Cindy | February 13, 2008 at 8:33 pm

I made this for dinner last night… YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I used WALNUT OIL, which we use a lot for roasting veggies and it was amazing!
Thanks for the inspiration, a new favorite!
6. Tara | February 15, 2008 at 8:50 pm

Eating it for lunch right now. YUM. I must try the Dino chip recipe above for Liam. He would love that.
7. Emily | February 16, 2008 at 8:24 am

I made this salad for dinner tonight for my significant other, his dad, and his stepmother. Rave reviews all around! Everyone remarked about how fresh and flavorful this salad was. Thanks for the recipes and ideas!
8. Jenni | February 18, 2008 at 1:15 am

Let me start by saying I hate salad. HATE IT. But this was SOOOOOO good!!! I love your blog and I’ve tried lots of your recipes! Thank you for sharing with us! You inspire me to eat better! I gave you a shout out on my blog too!
9. Scarlett | March 14, 2008 at 8:06 pm

Looks great; I’ll have to try it!
10. zazazu | April 14, 2008 at 6:28 pm

This looks so good! I have a pile of kale in the fridge that I need to do something with. Now… I wonder if I have tomatoes and avocado…?
11. Summer Goodies « Ha&hellip | June 16, 2008 at 6:02 am

[...] time. I’ve tweaked it a bit from my original posting…you can find the updated version here. I am loving the addition of raisins and pine nuts. Oooooh! And the nori! Snipping up some sheets [...]
12. Rebecca | June 17, 2008 at 4:42 pm

I noticed Cindy’s comment above and have to say that dehydrated kale chips are also awesome. You lose none of the nutritional value like you do when you bake, and it’s still raw when dehydrated at 115 degrees or less. Mix up an olive oil-based dressing, baste kale leaves, dehydrate until crisp. So good. It really helps curb the potato chip craving.
13. lauren martin gauthier | June 17, 2008 at 11:29 pm

this is soooooo yummy! we subbed walnut oil too, doubled the cayenne (up to 1/4 tsp), and added the pine nuts, and WOW. SO GOOD. quick question for you sara- when you shred your kale, do you chop up the extra ’stalk’ at the end and add it to the salad? this time it went into the garbage disposal…but i am wondering if it would add a nice crunch to the salad….hmmm…
14. Jouissance » Blog A&hellip | June 24, 2008 at 7:07 pm

[...] a food blog, and she’s been writing a lot lately about raw eating. The recipe she posted for Raw Kale and Avocado Salad caught my attention. It honestly didn’t sound very appealing–raw kale? [...]
15. Brianna | June 24, 2008 at 7:10 pm

I finally tried this and loved it, much to my surprise! Blogged it here: http://www.jouissance.ca/?p=16 Sara, you may convince me to go raw yet.
16. Jennifer | September 12, 2008 at 5:34 am

This was quite good and fun to make–like being a kid again! I found that adding cubed jicama works well, too; the sweetness and crisp texture complement the kale nicely.
17. Raw Kale + Avocado Salad &hellip | September 29, 2008 at 8:39 pm

[...] Kari’s — and then found some variations of the recipe online, the best one so far from The Happy Foodie. This one included a pinch cayenne which added a delicious kick! Seriously, try it yourself — [...]
18. mt | September 30, 2008 at 2:03 am

This is delicious. Thanks. I added some pomegranate seeds too. Gave it a nice contrast in color and taste.

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