Kale Salad!

Last week I had a lovely dinner at Beauty and Essex in New York's Lower East Side. We were a rather large group and ended up ordering about every "little plate" on the menu. Every dish was delicious but one that especially stood out with the Kale Salad (I love raw kale) with Pancetta, Green Apple, Spiced Walnuts, and finished with an Apple Cider Vinaigrette. I liked it so much that I attempted to re-create it the next evening for a dinner party I was having.... and I have to say I was very satisfied with the results! See recipe below..

To start with, I made the dressing. I went with a Honey-Apple Cider Vinaigrette recipe compliments of Martha Stewart (good old Martha). It's really simple and straight forward...

I made my dressing in a glass bottle I picked up at Whole Foods because I wanted extra. But you can just as easily whisk in a bowl and use right away. And even commission some helpers ( like I did in the background)!

Next I decided to make my own spiced walnuts. My sister has a really easy, delicious recipe for spiced nuts that she makes during the holidays, so I used it for the walnuts. It consists of equal parts brown sugar, paprika, and salt (she usually uses Rosemary, but I left it out for this salad). Toast the walnuts in the oven for about 5 minutes at 400 F, or until you can smell them. Then take about 2 TBSP of butter and melt it in a pan. Toss in the walnuts and the spices and saute for about 5 minutes, until all the nuts are warm and coated with the spices (this is going to smell amazing). Set aside.

Saute in the butter and spices.

There is no reason to make this a project, so if you don't have time to make your own spiced walnuts, just buy them! Candied ones are just as good!

Next saute the Pancetta. When done, place on a paper towel to let the fat drain. 

Set aside.

Saute diced pancetta.

Next chop the Kale (after washing well, of course), and chop the apple (I chopped mine into long strips). Throw all the ingredients in a large bowl, shake up the dressing really well and toss the salad. Now, because I'm a huge carnivore I think this salad would be great with some grilled or shredded chicken in it, but that's your call! Enjoy!