My friend Jenna launched a project of her own last year, The Salad Club. This awesome idea supports local farmers, delicious food and brings people in the community together once a week for a salad or soup meal that the person can sit down and eat with others, or grab and go.

She asked me to contribute a couple of recipes last year, and this chopped kale salad was the first of mine she made for the club. I love kale salads because they are actually strong enough to hold up overnight with the dressing and provide you with lunch for the next day. I’m always trying to make enough of whatever I’m working on to feed us more than once!

I absolutely love eating this salad after teaching or taking a Pilates class, as it keeps my healthy energy and motivation going. For the kale, use a mixture of curly kale and lacinato (also called dinosaur) kale if you have it.

kale salad with chopped raw veggies, cranberries and sunflower seeds
1 bunch of mixed kale (approximately 10 leaves), cut into thin ribbons
1 medium head of broccoli, chopped into small pieces, florets only
1 medium head of cauliflower, chopped into small pieces, florets only
3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into small pieces, florets only
3 medium radishes, very thinly sliced into half moons
1/2 c. sunflower seeds
1/2 c. dried cranberries or cherries
parsley to garnish (optional)

lemon-dijon dressing
1/2 tsp. freshly grated lemon zest
2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
2 TBSP dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
generous amount of freshly ground pepper
sea salt
2/3 c. olive oil

Prepare dressing by gently whisking all ingredients except olive oil in a small mixing bowl with a pour spout. Add olive oil in a slow stream, whisking until dressing is emulsified.

Wash and dry all veggies. Remove the stem from each kale leaf, then stack a couple of leaves at a time and cut into thin kale ribbons. Add kale to a large bowl, then massage with just enough dressing to coat leaves. Let the kale tenderize with the dressing while you prepare the rest of the salad. Chop broccoli florets, cauliflower florets and carrots into very small pieces. Cut radishes in half after you remove tops, then slice as thin as possible. Add veggies to kale, top with sunflower seeds and dried cranberries/cherries and drizzle with as much of the dressing as desired. Sprinkle with chopped parsley to garnish.

Note: If you are saving some for lunch the next day, don’t add the extra dressing until then. Kale Yeah!