Massaged Kale Salad with Tahini and Preserved Lemon Dressing

Yeah, I know…another kale salad recipe. Big whoop! And to some extent, I agree. Kale has been touted as this magical super food for at least the last six years. It’s an extremely trendy salad green to eat. I mean, Beyoncé even wore a sweatshirt promoting kale in one of her music videos. And that, well, can turn some people off.

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But, I’m here to tell you that this salad is super good and totally worth the hype. I love kale and how easy it is to grow. Varieties like Lacinato kale hold up well to the summer heat when all of my other salad greens are either bolting, bittering or being ravaged by insects. Where I live (zone ⅚) kale lasts well into the winter, which means that if you plant kale in the spring, you will be harvesting it for about eight months. To me, that is the gift that keeps on giving! It is also hard to ignore the fact that kale is good for you. It has a ton of vitamin C and vitamin K, as well as certain compounds that ward off cancer.

Growing up in Mississippi, I was raised on hardy greens such as collards and mustard greens. Most of the time they were cooked till tender alongside a big chunk of ham hock, then drenched in pepper sauce, a cayenne pepper-infused vinegar. But in this recipe, I keep the kale raw and top it with my delicious tahini and preserved lemon dressing. I think you’ll really enjoy this salad. It is great as a breakfast salad with fried eggs, paired with soup at lunchtime, or for supper alongside a steak or falafel.

To start, wash one bunch of kale and strip the leaves from the stems with your hands, or cut the stems away from the leaves using a knife. You only need to remove the large, tough stem that runs up the center of each kale leaf; don’t worry about the rest. Discard stems and roughly chop kale. Add kale to a large mixing bowl along with ¼ teaspoon salt, one teaspoon maple syrup and two teaspoons of olive oil. Massage kale until all leaves are coated in dressing and leaves have softened. Set the bowl aside.

In a separate bowl or mason jar (I recommend a jar for easy mixing), combine ¼ cup tahini, 1 teaspoon maple syrup, a half of a slice of preserved lemon that has been chopped finely, 1 teaspoon of preserved lemon brine, one minced garlic clove, ¼ teaspoon of pepper and two teaspoons of hot tap water. Shake jar (or wisk if using a bowl) until ingredients are well incorporated. Depending on the brand of tahini you are using, you may need another one to two teaspoons of hot water to reach the desired dressing consistency. You want the dressing pourable, but not runny.

Drizzle dressing over kale and toss to coat. Enjoy the salad on it’s own or as a side.