Raw Kale Salad with Apple and Creamy Avocado Dressing

Move over Popeye and make room for the new "queen of greens," kale.

Gaining in popularity quickly, kale {a member of the cabbage family} is an amazing vegetable being recognized for its exceptional factors in nutrient richness, health benefits, and in delicious flavor.

Eating a variety of natural, unprocessed vegetables can do wonders for your health not to mention taste great, but choosing super-nutritious kale on a regular basis may provide significant health benefits, including cancer protection, lowered cholesterol and is super high in vitamins and minerals also, it's just plain good for you.

 

Here's a tip, by massaging kale, it will soften the rough, raw leaves and heightens its almost sweet flavor. The variety of textures in this salsa {crisp apples, crunchy nuts, and soft avocado} will have you savoring every bite.

Ingredients:

For salad:

1 large bunch (about 1/2 pound) kale, washed

1 tablespoon olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon, divided

1 apple, cored and thinly sliced

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

For dressing:

1 ripe avocado

1/4 cup tahini

1/4 cup water

Juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon maple syrup

2 tablespoons coriander leaves

1 teaspoon cumin

Salt

Pepper

Directions: 

1. To prepare the kale, lay each leaf flat on a cutting board and run a sharp knife down each side of stem. Discard stems. Tear up leaves into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil and juice of half a lemon over kale. With clean hands, work oil and lemon into leaves for a few minutes. Leaves will turn bright green and will soften considerably.
2. Drizzle apple with juice from other lemon half to prevent browning. Add apple and walnuts to massaged kale and set aside.
3. In a food processor, combine first seven ingredients for dressing. Process until smooth. (It will be fairly thick and creamy.) Add more water if desired, and salt and pepper to taste. Pour dressing over salad and toss.