Kale Caesar Salad with Roasted Chickpeas

With Thanksgiving squarely in the rearview mirror, its time to focus our attention on the other big day. Christmas is upon us and with it comes all the sweets and guilty pleasures we can muster. In our house, Anthony and I are almost done with everything from Thanksgiving except the extra turkey my mom sent me home with from Ohio. Holiday parties are filling up our calendars and there are plates of cookies as far as the eye can see. In addition to all this, the malls are a madhouse and

To keep things relatively healthy and light, I’ve been keeping this Kale Caesar Salad on constant rotation this year. Though kale is past its hype, I still love it and think it deserves a place on every table. My dad isn’t convinced, he thinks it tastes like grass. By gently massaging the kale with salt, the greens end up very tender, not grassy and a bold bright green.

This recipe seems like a lot when you look at the instructions and is indeed a multistep process however the resulting salad is sure to wow your guests.

Ingredients

For the Chickpeas
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste

For the Croutons
4 dinner rolls, torn into bite-size pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon oregano
1/8 teaspoon thyme

For the Salad Dressing

2 tablespoons anchovy paste
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 teaspoons garlic paste
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons grated parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups olive oil

For the Salad

1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup shredded parmesan

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400

2. Rinse the chickpeas and pour them on a kitchen towel. Pat them dry and remove any loose skins. Drizzle with olive oil and toss with the salt, pepper, and paprika. Roast the chickpeas on a cookie sheet for 20 minutes or until they are crispy.

3. Toss all the ingredients for the croutons in a large bowl and pour onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 400 until crispy, about 8 minutes.

4. IN a medium bowl, whisk together the anchovy paste, garlic and mustard, add half of the lemon juice and egg yolks, whisking until smooth. Add the remainder of the egg, parmesan, salt, and pepper then gradually add the oil, whisking constantly.

5. Wash the kale and remove the thick center stems and veins. Tear the leaves into bite-size pieces and toss with salt. Gently massage the kale until it releases a distinct grassy smell, softs and turns bright green, about 3 minutes.

6. In a large bowl, toss the chickpeas, croutons, dressing, and kale together, topping with the shredded parmesan cheese and serve.