Meatless Monday: Double Sesame Kale | chicago foodie girl

6.04.2012

Meatless Monday: Double Sesame Kale

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. My friend, Barb, had a training to attend on Saturday in Madison and she invited me to head up there with her and make it a girls weekend. I made a last minute decision to clear my calendar and join her, which I'm so glad I did! There was a time in my life in which I spent practically every weekend roaming the streets of that city (back when I was a senior in college/a lifetime ago!), but I hadn't been back in eight-ish years. I spent the time she was in her training wandering around the huge farmers market and visiting all of my old favorite stores and cafés. It was a lovely weekend, but I have to say that it was a bit weird being back there, as everything was so familiar, but I'm no longer the same person who fell in love with that city all those years ago. The 30-something-year-old version of myself definitely has quite a different perspective than the 19-year-old version did (I'm also far less awkward & have much better style, thank goodness!).

After a weekend of 
rum punch and amazing gelato (more on this next week!), it's time for me to do another mini-detox. I don't ever do anything weird or harsh - I just focus on eating a mostly fruit & veggie-based diet and up my Shakeology servings from one to two per day. My detoxes give me the perfect excuse to pull out my recipe files and revisit some of those long-neglected, but delicious meatless dishes, including today's Double Sesame Kale. While I usually find raw kale to be far too bitter, the honey in this dish cuts down the bitterness factor; the addition of the sesame and Bragg's Liquid Aminos leads to the perfect sweet/salty/savory combination. Yum!!

Double Sesame Kale
Makes 4 servings (1 cup each)


INGREDIENTS
1-2 bunches of kale (enough to make 8 cups chopped)
3 Tbs brown rice vinegar
1 Tbs honey
1 Tbs dark sesame oil
1 Tbs sesame seeds
Bragg's Liquid Aminos, to taste (you can substitute with low sodium soy sauce)

DIRECTIONS
1. Remove kale leaves from stems. Discard stems and finely chop kale leaves.

2. Put chopped kale in large bowl and pour on remaining ingredients.

3. Massage the ingredients into the kale for 5 minutes (with your hands) until the 8 cups of kale shrink down to about 4 cups.

*recipe via Dawn Jackson Blatner at The Chopping Block

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4 comments

  1. I gave Shakeology a try recently, and loved it. What flavor do you do? I have been debating getting some more, but it is so darn $$$. Have you ever found another comparable, I have been on the hunt.

    And oh how I live Paciugo, we had one near our house but sadly it closed. :(

    Sounds like a great weekend.

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  2. I love kale. It's sad how misunderstood it is.

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  3. This sounds really good! I've made kale chips a few times, but haven't done anything with it beyond that. I am curious about the BAA though--what's the benefit to using it over soy sauce? Does it change the taste?

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  4. @Jacky: I am a Shakeology fiend! I use the chocolate flavor - I actually haven't tried either of the other two because I like the chocolate so much (and it's so versatile). It is quite expensive, which sucks, but I haven't been able to find a replacement that tastes as good as Shakeology & has the same nutritional benefits. I do know a trusted Beachbody coach who sells it on ebay: $235 for 2 bags/free shipping, which is far cheaper than you can get it through the BB site. I found that I usually don't go through an entire bag in a month, so not having the autoship charges makes a big difference. Email me if you want the details & I'll send you to her profile.

    @Sandra: Totally! I think a lot of people are turned off by the bitterness, but it can be so delicious with the right prep!

    @weary prof: The BAA is a bit lighter than soy sauce & has a cleaner taste. It's also supposed to have less sodium, but really that depends on which brand of soy sauce you use. I really don't have a preference for one or the other - I'll use BAA if I have it around, but I won't make a special effort to get it if I have soy sauce. Make sure you use the low sodium stuff though!

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