Raving

You’ll notice I changed the title of this blog to include “raving.” I mean that word in the context of being extravagantly flattering rather than that party thing they do in England and hopefully not like a raving lunatic, but that will be  for you to decide.

Yesterday, we got our weekly CSA portion and it included spinach, dill, cilantro, leaf lettuce, cauliflower, sugar peas, yellow squash, zucchini, broccoli, and kale. I was particularly excited about the kale, a vegetable most frequently seen adorning restaurant salad bars. Now, however  much I wish it were so, leafy green vegetables rarely bring joy to my heart. That’s part of the reason we do a CSA — to find new and exciting healthy food! That my family and I will like!

Anyway, back to the kale — and vegetables don’t get much greener or leafier than kale — you’re probably wondering why I was so excited. Well, move over Frito-Lay, baked kale chips are here.

Yes, I know. It sounds absurd, like something only a raving (there’s that word again) vegetarian would eat, but an article I read swore that she baked kale into chips and, not only were they edible, her kids loved them.

This, I had to try. And guess what? They were good. Okay, they’re not really going to replace Pringles or Doritos on your grocer’s shelves, but for a healthy snack, they’re surprisingly un-horrible. In fact, I liked them. And so did my mom. I didn’t attempt to try them on my daughter.

Now, if I could just figure out what the heck to do with that kohlrabi.

If you’re interested in making your own kale chips, just search “baked kale” on your favorite search engine or follow the directions I did from “Smitten Kitchen.” http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/03/baked-kale-chips/. It really couldn’t be easier. You wash and dry the leaves, remove the thick center stalk and tear the rest into small pieces. Toss with a tablespoon of olive oil, sprinkle with salt and bake for about 15 minutes until crisp. Cool and eat. Give it a shot and let me know what you think.