Can a Vitamix do kale?

I succumbed to the call of the Vitamix - it was on sale at Costco. It certainly does a smoothie like no other blender! 

Blend together:

1/2 c soy milk
1/4 c yogurt, nonfat Danon vanilla
1 orange, peeled and sectioned
1/3 c pineapple chunks
2 Tbsp ginger root (put in ginger chunks)
1 Tbsp parsley
1 C kale, ripped up

Rated a 4.67 on the Kale Scale.

Lentils Roasted Vegie Mish Mash with Kale

Using leftovers tonight, but delicious!

Had some lentil soup in the freezer from December - perfect day to use it.A Spring Day, blustery, rainy, sunny, wind chill. Added some of the Roasted Vegies I made day or so ago. And 1 cup of ripped up kale. Microwave it all.

Top with 1/4 cup non-fat Greek yogurt (plain).


Rated a 4.687 on the Kale Scale.

Steamed Kale Topped With Roasted Vegies

Decided to roast some root vegies which included fennel bulb, onion, parsnip, turnip, rutabaga, yellow pepper, fingerling potatoes. Roasted with a bit of oil, balsamic vinegar, ras el hanout spice, chili pepper ground, black pepper ground, ground ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon. HmmMmm... good!

Steam
1 Cup of Kale, ripped to bite size pieces

Top with
1 and 1/4 cup of the roasted vegies
10 grape tomatoes, halved.

Enjoy!


Rated a 4.71 on the Kale Scale.

Avocado Kale Salad

Simple salad. Fast food. But, this much avocado at once, I think I prefer it in guacamole. Not bad though.

Toss together and serve:

1 Cup Kale, ripped to bite size pieces
1 avocado, peeled, cubed.  Mix with a bit of OJ or lemon juice.
8 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/3 Cup pineapple, fresh, cut up
1 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
2 Tbsp Fig Balsamic dressing (from Whole Foods)

Rated a 4.45 on the Kale Scale.

Winter Salad

The spring like weather yesterday inspired a salad.

Toss and mix up, then serve:

1+ cup purple kale, ripped to bite size pieces
8 green olives, halved
12 grape tomatoes, quartered
2 oz whiskey cask cheddar (from Whole Foods)
1 tsp pepper, ground
2 Tbsp Fig Balsamic Dressing (Whole Foods)







Rated a 4.667 on the Kale Scale.

Kale Chicken Saute with Red Cabbage, Shredded Ginger and Pineapple

I made a delicious chicken recipe in January, froze a piece, pulled it out to use tonight. Remembered the cabbage, and then there was this piece of ginger root that needed to be used. That's how this came together.

Saute
2 tsp olive oil
1/3 C onion, chopped up
1/3 C red cabbage, chopped up

After a bit, add and continue saute
8 grape tomatoes, quartered
1/2 C pineapple, chopped up
3 oz chicken breast, already cooked
2 tsp ginger, shredded
1 oz water
2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Add, wilt to your desire
1 C kale, ripped to bite size pieces
2 oz orange juice

Serve with a dash of dukkah on top.


Rated a 4.65 on the Kale Scale.

Whole Foods / Fast Food

Was shopping last weekend at Whole Foods, before dinner, hungry. Walked by the RTE (ready to eat) food bar, and ended up putting together in a pint box - curried potatoes, quinoa with lemon and cilantro, curried tofu, and dal with spinach.

When I got home, I dumped it all into a 4 quart mixing bowl along with 1+ cup of kale ripped to bite size pieces.

Microwave on high for 2 minutes or so.

It was delicious!  No calorie for this one.

Rated a 4.68 on the Kale Scale.

Orange Glazed Tofu on Steamed Kale

I've had the tofu for a week, and decided today is the day.  I varied a recipe from Natural Health magazine - one in my archives that I'd never tried before. The original is Orange Glazed Tofu and Turnips - gee, I didn't have turnips. I subbed with fingerling potatoes. I'm pretty sure it tastes better this way!

The recipe serves 4. Nutrition count is for 1 serving. (In reality, I used about 1/3 of the recipe for my meal, but technically, I loaded up my plate..)

Prepare and set aside in a cup
3/4 C orange juice
2 Tbsp soy sauce, lite

Prepare and set aside in a bowl
2 tsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp ginger root, freshly grated
3/4 C onion, chopped
1/2 tsp red pepper, ground
1 sweet red pepper, chopped

Prepare for use
14 oz tofu, extra firm, patted dry, cut into cubes

Saute and cook until tofu is browned, about 6-8 minutes, and then set aside
1 Tbsp olive oil
Tofu sprinkle with:
Mrs Dash, 1/2 tsp
Chili powder, 1/4 tsp

Saute for 3-5 minutes
3/4 Tbsp olive oil
5 fingerling potatoes, chopped up

Add and continue to saute for another 4-5 minutes
Garlic and onion mixture

Add, and reduce the sauce by simmering on medium for 4-6 minutes
Orange juice and soy sauce

Add and continue to reduce the sauce until tofu and potatoes are nicely covered/glazed.
the cooked tofu

Serve on a bed of
1+cup kale, steamed.


Rated a 4.699 on the Kale Scale.

Eggplant Scallopini Marsala Variation

I guess it's winter that makes Eggplant taste better. I see that January 2012, I made a batch of Eggplant Scallopini Marsala from the Moosewood Restaurant Cookbook, and again this month, I tried this recipe again. But with some variations.

Instead of making pasta, I steamed 1+ cups of kale and used that along with 2/3 cup of cooked couscous as the bed for the eggplant mixture. Also, the recipe calls for mushrooms, and I substituted a yellow pepper.

This recipe serves 4. I used one serving - the nutrition info is for 1 serving, served on a bed of steamed kale and topped with 1 tbsp of Egyptian dukkah.

Saute until onion is translucent (about 8 min):
2 tbspolive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 bay leaf

Add, cover and cook until eggplant is soft (about 15 min):

1 eggplant unpeeled, diced
1 medium yellow pepper, sweet, chopped
1 Tbsp basil, dried, crumbled

Add, Uncover and cook until liquid is absorbed (about 15 min):

1 tsp black pepper, ground
1 tbsp garlic, raw, minced, -
14.5 oz tomato, diced, canned
6 oz cooking sherry

Rated a 4.62 on the Kale Scale