I’ve been looking forward to sharing this salad with you for a while now, which is a little surprising for me. Never a big salad person, I began resisting them even more when I went vegan. I didn’t like feeling as though I was falling into a stereotype. When someone would give me a blank stare and say something along the lines of, “Vegan? So…you must eat a lot of salad,” I liked being able to say that no, actually, I didn’t. Can anyone else identify with that?
Stereotype or no stereotype, salads have unnecessarily caught a bad rap as bland, boring diet food. They can be hearty and flavorful and just as satisfying as anything else. Lately I’ve started to come around and have been incorporating more greens and salads into my diet, a goal that has been made much easier thanks to the fact that Erik loves them and already eats one nearly every day.
A few weeks ago I combined two things in particular that I’ve been wanting to eat more of: kale and lentils. They, along with a few other ingredients, made for an easy, fantastic salad that we have both been craving like crazy ever since. The strong earthiness that kale can have is tempered by the other ingredients in this dish, giving it a very smooth and deep flavor. I’m enjoying the salad the most with warm, freshly made lentils–perhaps because it’s winter–but it’s equally as good when they’re chilled. This is the salad that what we paired with the Creamy Sweet Potato Soup I shared last week (great combo!), but it is a great addition to any meal.
KALE AND LENTIL SALAD
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1 small/medium bunch kale, destemmed and broken into bite-sized pieces
1½ cup cooked green lentils (warm or chilled)
Oil (or water), for the onions
One quarter of a small red onion, thinly sliced
½-1 avocado, diced
2 tbsp walnut oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
Splash of tamari or Bragg liquid aminos
Directions
Heat a small amount of oil (or water) in a small pan. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5-10 minutes.
Add all ingredients in a large bowl and stir (or “massage” with your hands) for a few minutes until well combined. Serve.
Tip: (1) If you don’t have any cooked lentils on hand, simply pick through the lentils to remove any stones/debris, then rinse them. Add one part lentils and about 2 parts vegetable broth or water to a pot and bring it to a boil. Cover, lower to a simmer, and let them cook until tender and all the water has been absorbed, about 20-30 minutes. (2) If you have a large bunch of kale, I’d suggest adding extra lemon juice, to taste. (3) Along those same lines, if you have any salad leftover, it is great the next day as well; although I recommend mixing in a little extra lemon juice a few minutes before serving.
What’s your favorite salad? Any great kale or lentil recipes I should try?
















