Avocado and Shaved Kale Salad

Tart lemons and crisp garden fresh kale tempered by a generous portion of cool creamy avocados and salty grated Parmesan make this simple salad startlingly good. Good enough to share. Because who doesn’t want a salad that satisfies?

In my twenties I didn’t cook much. I lived in one apartment for almost year and the only dirty dishes I remember generating were a spoon and a teacup. That was the apartment with the unemployed roommate who never left the house, set his lizards (and the crickets and mice he bought to feed them, but that’s another story) loose in the apartment so that they could come out from under the refrigerator to terrify me at two in the morning when I went to get a glass of water, and told me my friends weren’t allowed to visit because I was the irresponsible one. So not typical but even under better housemate circumstances life was mostly restaurants with home cooked meals being an event not the norm. And those meals were mostly quesadillas and Tom Salad.

Tom Salad, named after a Tom I didn’t know and modified enough that his moniker was probably not required, was a spinach salad with fresh tomato, feta, and lemon juice. There had been more ingredients but they were stripped away over time and all that remained was a delicious combination of greens and salty and tangy and sweet. Then I developed an intolerance to raw spinach and had to give Tom Salads up. It was a sad sad day.

When I came across this recipe for kale salad on the kitchn I immediately thought of Tom Salad and knew I wanted just one more ingredient to bring it closer to the combo I remember so fondly. Since it’s not tomato season, enter the avocado. And I’m happy to have it.

Additional notes 

The original calls for Pecorino which is what I normally use instead of Parmesan but a few weeks ago someone ignored my very specific instructions on which cheese to get while they were at Trader Joe’s so I have an open block of Parmesan in the fridge instead of my usual Pecorino.

Just barely adapted from thekitchn’s Kale Salad with Pecorino coincidentally (really!) using an ingredient or two suggested in the comment section.

While this only takes a few minutes to toss together I highly recommend making it at least an hour before you plan to eat to allow the flavors to meld and the dressing to tenderize and infuse the kale.

Leftovers? Have I got the perfect tuna salad for you! I wish I could share it without making you click but the internet is cruel and I decided to separate the recipe both for search clarity and for foodgawker’s one picture per post policy.

Avocado and Shaved Kale Salad

ingredients

• 2 small ripe avocados
• One bunch of kale, washed and cut into the thinnest strips possible
• About two ounces of Parmesan or pecorino cheese, shredded
• One clove of garlic, minced
• The juice of two lemons
• A few glugs of extra virgin olive oil (about ¼ cup)
• Salt to taste (probably just a pinch)
• Pepper to taste (in my kitchen this meant several grinds in the dressing and then another round on the avocado before I tossed it all together)

 directions

1. In a separate small bowl or measuring cup with a pour spout whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper
2. Just before assembly cut the avocado into bite sized pieces (about and inch square)
3. In a bowl large enough to give you room to thoroughly toss the salad combine the kale, cheese, and avocado
4. Pour the dressing over the top and toss the salad until the kale and avocado are well coated. This is a lightly dressed salad so this might take a minute or two. If the avocado is soft it will break down and add to the dressing bit but that’s a good thing.
5. Allow to sit, loosely covered, at room temperature for at least an hour before serving.

Avocado Kale Salad

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Ingredients

  

• 2 small ripe avocados
• One bunch of kale washed and cut into the thinnest strips possible
• About two ounces of Parmesan or pecorino cheese shredded
• One clove of garlic minced
• The juice of two lemons
• A few glugs of extra virgin olive oil about ¼ cup
• Salt to taste probably just a pinch
• Pepper to taste in my kitchen this meant several grinds in the dressing and then another round on the avocado before I tossed it all together

Instructions

 

• In a separate small bowl or measuring cup with a pour spout whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper
• Just before assembly cut the avocado into bite sized pieces (about and inch square)
• In a bowl large enough to give you room to thoroughly toss the salad combine the kale, cheese, and avocado
• Pour the dressing over the top and toss the salad until the kale and avocado are well coated. This is a lightly dressed salad so this might take a minute or two. If the avocado is soft it will break down and add to the dressing bit but that’s a good thing.
• Allow to sit, loosely covered, at room temperature for at least an hour before serving.

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