Kale Caesar Salad

One of the best food decisions I've ever made was to start making my own salad dressings. It's difficult to find bottled salad dressings without those cheap, unhealthy oils, and once I realized how much better homemade salad dressing tastes I was sold! I'll never go back. 

Most salad dressings are either oil or mayonnaise based, and I have a substitute for each. For any creamy dressings I use Greek yogurt, and I use olive oil for the rest. Most are as easy as stirring together a few ingredients and serving, but a few require a food processor. Usually the best ones, so it's always worth it. This caesar dressing is really, really worth it.

This salad is good with just romaine lettuce, but I'm always looking for ways to sneak super foods into my meals and blanched kale is a great way. I also really enjoy the variety of texture and flavor that mixing greens adds to a salad. 

CAESAR SALAD DRESSING

6 anchovy fillets, packed in oil

2 garlic cloves

½ teaspoon kosher salt

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

                        

In a blender or food processor, pulse the anchovies, garlic cloves and salt until it forms somewhat of a paste. Add the egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, dijon mustard, black pepper, and olive oil; blend until completely incorporated. Mix in the parmesan cheese. Taste for seasoning, adding salt or pepper accordingly. Transfer to a container or bowl and store in the refrigerator, covered until ready to use. Can be stored for about 3 days.

              

FOR THE SALAD

1 large head of romaine lettuce

1 bunch of kale

Shaved parmesan, for topping

Tear kale into pieces, remove stalks, and place in a metal colander. Pour boiling water over the kale and stir to make sure all the kale is softened by the hot water. You may want to place the kale in a bath of ice water to stop the cooking process, or just toss kale until completely cooled. Tear romaine lettuce into pieces and combine with kale.

FOR THE CROUTONS

1 baguette (or extra pizza crust)
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder, optional

When serving this salad with pizza sometime I will bake an extra piece of pizza crust dough and then chop it up to make croutons. Pizza crust croutons are really tasty! 

Regardless, cube whatever bread you're using and toss with olive oil, garlic powder if desired, and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Broil in the oven for a few minutes until crusty and golden brown.

Toss with salad dressing and croutons, and sprinkle with shaved parmesan. 

Margherita Pizza

If you've come all the way to the blog I imagine you are at least interested in the food or recipes or pictures of food.. so I wanted to give you an idea of what you might see here in the future. To give you an introduction to the kind of food I like to make, I'd say that I love cooking healthy meals but without sacrificing natural flavors for any particular diet. The only things I really try to cut out of our life are bad oils (anything cheap and GMO like sunflower, soybean, rapeseed oils..), refined flours and sugars, and anything with preservatives. We love fruits and vegetables, fancy cheeses, and meat--though honestly we don't eat a lot of fish. Our weak area is certainly unhealthy carbs. When we want a treat Brad has something like beer and pretzels, while I bake something sweet to go with my tea. I do buy tons of fruits and vegetables and avoid pre-prepared items like bread, pasta, or salad dressing. My grocery lists are usually about 60% produce, 20% meat and dairy, then 20% dry goods like flour, sugar, tea and coffee, nuts, rice and quinoa, and beans.

This keeps our bread consumption to a minimum because bread takes a while to make, and we almost never eat pasta. I do make my fair share of pizza though, which is actually the recipe I've got for you today! Making things from scratch IS time consuming, but fresh, homemade foods are so much better that I never mind spending the extra time. Meal times always feel like a treat when you put the effort into making them special. And I enjoy this pizza like crazy!

Margherita pizza is a classic for a reason; such a simple combination of flavors and quintessentially Italian. Every time I take a bite I can't believe that there is so much flavor in only those three ingredients. With a full hour of rising this pizza crust is a perfect combination of fluffy, but also crispy, and really easy to make, especially in a stand mixer. If you're in a pinch, the rising time can be skipped (only letting the dough rest for about 15 mins), but you will get a denser, crispier crust.

I do a couple of twists on the crust: sometimes I add finely ground rosemary, oregano, and basil to the dough for an herb crust, or rub a cut garlic clove over it for just a hint of garlic that won't overpower the subtle flavors of the toppings.

So let's start with the crust.
2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon yeast
1 tablespoon salt
5 cups flour

Add yeast to mixing bowl, then add warm water. (Water must be about 100 F to activate, but not kill, the yeast. I like to think of it as the temperature of baby's bath water; warm but not hot.)
Let yeast proof for about 5 minutes. Add salt and then flour, a little at a time, mixing well (with dough hook attachment for stand-mixer). Knead until smooth. Cover bowl with damp cloth and put it someplace warm. Allow the dough to rise for around 1 hour.

Halve the dough and, using your hands, work it into a flat and even shape. Italian pizza crust is traditionally very thin but still soft and bready. Pour a tablespoon of oil on the pan, then place the crust on it, then cover the crust in another tablespoon of olive oil.
Now would be the time to sprinkle your ground herbs, if you're adding them. Bake the crust at 400 F for 15 minutes.

Prepare your toppings while the pizza crust is baking. I halved a variety of small tomatoes and chopped my basil. I've seen margherita pizza served a variety of ways though: tomato sauce topped with mozzarella and basil, or large slices of tomatoes and whole basil leaves. Fresh mozzarella is much too soft to shred and the Italians usually place it in even clumps or slices around the crust.



























Remove the crust from the oven and, if you want to, rub it with a halved garlic clove. Then cover the crust evenly with olive oil and add your toppings. Fresh mozzarella, then tomatoes, then basil.

Now return to the oven and bake for another 5-10 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is turning golden brown. You can either make a second pizza or some breadsticks with the remaining dough, or you can freeze it and make another delicious pizza later! I often bake a little extra piece of  the dough and then make croutons for an accompanying salad.

I am sighing at the memory of eating this pizza. I hope you enjoy it too.

MARGHERITA PIZZA

2 cups warm water 

1 tablespoon yeast

1 tablespoon salt

5 cups flour 

3 tablespoons olive oil

Fresh mozzarella

Tomatoes

Fresh basil

Add yeast to mixing bowl, then add warm water. Let yeast proof for about 5 minutes. Add salt and then flour, a little at a time, mixing well (with dough hook attachment for stand-mixer). Knead until smooth. Cover bowl with damp cloth and put it someplace warm. Allow the dough to rise for around 1 hour.
Halve the dough, and using your hands work it into a flat and even shape. Pour a tablespoon of oil on the pan, then place the crust on it, then cover the crust in another tablespoon of olive oil. Bake the crust at 400 F for 15 minutes.

Prepare your toppings while the pizza crust is baking. Remove the crust from the oven, cover evenly with olive oil, then add your toppings. Fresh mozzarella, then tomatoes, then basil. Return pizza to the oven and bake for another 5-10 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown. 

Makes 2 large pizzas; serves 4-6 people. 

Sweet Potato Kale Salad

I'm not sure why I'm calling this salad by only two of the ingredients because every one of them adds something amazing. I sat down, took one bite, and just sighed with happiness because it was everything I hoped it would be. I ate the entire thing and then proceeded to switch it out with another meal on our weekly meal plan so I can eat it again as soon as possible!

SWEET POTATO KALE SALAD with LEMON TAHINI DRESSING

Serves 2

1 bunch of kale

3/4 cup of chickpeas 

1/2 of a sweet potato

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 of a red onion, diced

1 avocado, diced

1/2 cup tahini

Juice from 1 lemon

1-2 tbs warm water

Salt and pepper

Sprigs of cilantro and parsley

Steam or roast your sweet potato ahead of time so it will be room temperature when you're ready to serve. The easiest way is to cube the sweet potato before cooking, and salt lightly when it is ready. Set aside to cool. 

Next blanch the kale. Remove the stalks and tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces, then pour almost-boiling water over the leaves. Immediately afterwards dunk the kale in ice water to halt the cooking process, which will preserve more of the nutrients and leave some of the crispness. 

Rinse chickpeas thoroughly, and dice the purple onion and avocado. Add those ingredients plus the cooled sweet potatoes and the dried cranberries to the top of your kale salad. 

For the salad dressing, combine tahini and lemon juice and whisk until well blended. It will become very thick so add warm water a teaspoon or so at a time until you reach the consistency you want. Then salt and pepper to taste. Chop the parsley and cilantro and add them to your dressing. And that's it!

Once you add the dressing and give it a stir, it's all ready to enjoy. It's okay to get your hopes up because it's one of the best things I've ever tasted!