Open Kitchen Kale Salad

Now that Hanukkah is in the rear view window and if you did it right, you should be completely sick of fried foods.  So the next logical step is to turn to the vegetables that are abundant in the winter, things that survive in the fall, and have a decent shelf life in cold storage.  There are a number of variations of her well known kale salad in Susan Spungen's latest cookbook, Open Kitchen, and I really loved it.  You can top with roasted carrots, or julienned apples, or pomegranate seeds.  I subbed pistachios for almonds because that is what I had. 

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon minced shallot

1 small garlic clove, finely grated

¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more

Freshly ground black pepper

2 large bunches of Tuscan kale (about 1½ lb. total), center stem discarded, leaves thinly sliced

12 ounces brussels sprouts, trimmed, finely grated or shredded with a knife

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided

⅓ cup almonds with skins, coarsely chopped

1 cup finely grated Pecorino (optional)

Preparation

1.  Combine lemon juice, Dijon mustard, shallot, garlic, ½ tsp. salt, and a pinch of pepper in a small bowl. Stir to blend; set aside to let flavors meld. Mix thinly sliced kale and shredded brussels sprouts in a large bowl.

2.  Measure ½ cup oil into a cup. Spoon 1 Tbsp. oil from cup into a small skillet; heat oil over medium-high heat. Add almonds to skillet and stir frequently until golden brown in spots, about 2 minutes. Transfer nuts to a paper towel-lined plate. Sprinkle almonds lightly with salt.

3.  Slowly whisk remaining olive oil in cup into lemon-juice mixture. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

4.  Add dressing and cheese to kale mixture; toss to coat. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Garnish with almonds.

5.  Do Ahead: Dressing, kale mixture, and toasted almonds can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover dressing and kale mixture separately and chill. Cover almonds and let stand at room temperature.