I thought about titling this post "How to make your green vegetables taste like junk food" because really, that is what this is all about.
I must admit that until recently, the autumn kale and greens season was not very exciting to me vegetable-wise. In fact, it was a sad time because it represented the loss of tomatoes, summer squash, basil, and all of those other wondrous flavors of the summer.
But then along came this recipe which was, in and of itself, a game changer. This method of seasoning veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper and baking is just simply amazing. The veggies become crispy and crunchy--like potato chips! They're so tasty that you don't want to stop eating them, and you just might fight with your husband over who gets the last chip.
My only regret is not having learned about this idea earlier on in life. And I don't know--a nutritionist might tell me that this method of preparing greens actually extracts all of the vitamins that exist in the veggies before baking. But I'm quite content living in the bliss of my ignorance.
Kale* Chips, adapted from the Smitten Kitchen blog
Ingredients:
1 bunch of kale (I like dinosaur kale)
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
To prepare:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Rinse the Kale, dry, and then chop coarsely & remove stems
3. Spread kale on a cookie sheet for baking (I put mine on a sil pad. If you don't have one of these you might want to use parchment paper, or to oil the pan before placing vegetables)
4. Sprinkle olive oil, salt, and pepper on the kale and mix until the seasonings are well distributed.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the kale looks crisp and delicious.
*Note: I tried using swiss chard once and this did not turn out well. The swiss chard did not become crispy and crunchy. Rather it remained a soggy limp mess. It was a huge disappointment. Perhaps spinach would work... I can't say for sure. I'd be interested to try. I'm also interested to try this recipe using other vegetables, such as carrots. I'm interested to hear about other people's experiences using this idea but with different veggies.
I bake most of my veggies! Broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussel sprouts (halved) turn out especially divine. Try adding some honey or your favorite vinegar in the mixture to caramelize. Yellow curry powder on the cauliflower is also delicious.
ReplyDeleteoh my gosh, i've made these before and i LOVE THEM! it's like a healthy potatochip with just the right amount of salt and crunch!
ReplyDeleteI love this blog!! Thanks for posting Ghassan, though I am guessing you did not write this post.
ReplyDeleteOK, as a dietitian and nutrition PhD student...the vitamins stay in the veggies when you bake them as you are not leeching them out into the pot water, etc. Spinach probably won't work, as I think it won't hold up in the baking (it will probably just wilt) but I would try other types of kale too!
Try adding apple cider vinegar too!
that's a relief about the vitamins!
ReplyDeletei love the idea of trying apple cider vinegar, or honey. next time... yum.
i have actually had baked spinach chips before! i tried them at a veggie restaurant years ago. it might depend on the size of the spinach?? they were also on the oily side..might need an extra splash of olive oil?
ReplyDeleteohh interesting vivian--i'm gonna try it!
ReplyDeleteA farmer at the local market told me this recipie when I asked what to do with Russian Kale...came out wondrful. I sprayed with olive oil and then used a mixture of garlic/onion powder/sea salt. Ended up fighting with the kids over who got the last chips.
ReplyDelete