I recently held a meeting for my cooking club, at a nearby restaurant, to decide what our menu would be this week. A couple of my students mentioned they couldn’t come to the restaurant because they were on a health food kick. Inquiry into what they were eating resulted in no answers so in response to this, I decided to help them expand their knowledge of healthy food in this unhealthy world.
Kale is a beautiful green vegetable that is one of those superfoods that people eat and sound incredibly healthy while doing so. Considering kale is full of vitamins and anti-cancer fighting properties, it’s no wonder that it actually is. It’s also full of various other words that I can barely pronounce which has always been the comment about bad chemicals in processed foods. Kale contains zeaxanthin which is good for your eyes but it’s not an easy word to pronounce. Let’s not discriminate against those unhealthy preservatives based on the pronounceability of their names but rather because of the harm they cause in your body! In all seriousness, I eat kale all the time, whether stir-fried or even raw in a smoothie, it’s an easy way to pick up your daily vitamins.
Quinoa is also full of food super powers. It’s a carb that also contains a good amount of protein and once again contains many vitamins and minerals that other carby foods don’t have. It’s totally a bandwagon that people are jumping on and there’s nothing wrong with joining late.
When my students tried the finished product at cooking club, these future prime ministers and decision makers complained and whined about it. Well, I tried.
Kale and Quinoa Salad
Asian Ginger Dressing, from allrecipes.com
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp minced fresh ginger root
- ¾ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 3 tbsp honey
- ¼ Water
In a 1 pint glass jar or larger, combine the garlic, ginger, olive oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey, and water. Cover the jar with a tight fitting lid, and shake well. Stir the dressing until the honey dissolves. The original recipe says to microwave the jar uncovered for 1 minute but that seems unnecessary and will kill all your nutrients! Shake well before serving. Store covered in the refrigerator.
Salad Ingredients
- A bunch of Kale, washed and stalks removed.
- Olive oil
- Almonds, roasted
- 1 Orange
- ½ cup Quinoa, cooked and cooled
Cut up the Kale leaves up. Massage with olive oil, base the amount on how much kale there is. Let kale sit to absorb oil. Meanwhile, roast almonds, cut up orange. Add quinoa to kale. Add dressing and toss.
Kale is a beautiful green vegetable that is one of those superfoods that people eat and sound incredibly healthy while doing so. Considering kale is full of vitamins and anti-cancer fighting properties, it’s no wonder that it actually is. It’s also full of various other words that I can barely pronounce which has always been the comment about bad chemicals in processed foods. Kale contains zeaxanthin which is good for your eyes but it’s not an easy word to pronounce. Let’s not discriminate against those unhealthy preservatives based on the pronounceability of their names but rather because of the harm they cause in your body! In all seriousness, I eat kale all the time, whether stir-fried or even raw in a smoothie, it’s an easy way to pick up your daily vitamins.
Quinoa is also full of food super powers. It’s a carb that also contains a good amount of protein and once again contains many vitamins and minerals that other carby foods don’t have. It’s totally a bandwagon that people are jumping on and there’s nothing wrong with joining late.
When my students tried the finished product at cooking club, these future prime ministers and decision makers complained and whined about it. Well, I tried.
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| This isn't how we ate it. This is the massaging part of the recipe. |
Kale and Quinoa Salad
Asian Ginger Dressing, from allrecipes.com
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp minced fresh ginger root
- ¾ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 3 tbsp honey
- ¼ Water
In a 1 pint glass jar or larger, combine the garlic, ginger, olive oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey, and water. Cover the jar with a tight fitting lid, and shake well. Stir the dressing until the honey dissolves. The original recipe says to microwave the jar uncovered for 1 minute but that seems unnecessary and will kill all your nutrients! Shake well before serving. Store covered in the refrigerator.
Salad Ingredients
- A bunch of Kale, washed and stalks removed.
- Olive oil
- Almonds, roasted
- 1 Orange
- ½ cup Quinoa, cooked and cooled
Cut up the Kale leaves up. Massage with olive oil, base the amount on how much kale there is. Let kale sit to absorb oil. Meanwhile, roast almonds, cut up orange. Add quinoa to kale. Add dressing and toss.