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Do you have a Whole Foods near you? Like…dangerously close? Walking distance?
Because if you do, you probably spend approximately $50 a week on their prepared foods. O and I can pretty much always agree on their buffet bar as a quick and relatively healthy lunch or weeknight dinner out, and O has this impressive obsession with their chicken-fried tofu nuggets… oh, and we may or may not have bought our house based on its proximity to Whole Foods (leaning towards “may not”, but it was certainly a draw..)
One of the dishes we always, always load up on is their raw kale salad with cranberries. It’s light and bright but packed nutritionally, and the sweet, tart cranberries balance the bitter, earthy kale beautifully.
So this year, planning Thanksgiving and knowing I can stray a bit from the typical menu without a total revolt from my family, I had planned on making a creamed kale. You might remember this from my Thanksgiving menu! I wasn’t totally sure how I’d make yet another hot dish on the big day, but figured it’d be a nice, actual vegetable option for the more balanced of my guests. And then it hit me.. the Whole Foods kale salad with cranberries!
This kale salad is perfect for Thanksgiving because you can make it one or two days in advance and keep it in the frigo, just waiting to be set out on the table when it comes time. The raw kale is such a glorious treat next to the super heavy key players on Thanksgiving, and the cranberries are not only a beautifully vibrant pop of color and flavor, but a sweet seasonal addition that echoes your traditional cranberry sauce (with rosemary!) perfectly.
Even my dear mother asked, a few weeks ago, what my menu would be, and I mentioned the cream kale. “Oh,” she added. “…”, she concluded. But when I told her I was making the switch to the raw kale salad with cranberries, she was far more enthused. “I’ll actually eat that!”, she said. Good to know, ma. Good to know.
So make this for Thanksgiving, make it for Christmas Eve, make it for Christmas Day. It’s so easy, it’s make-ahead, and it’s the perfect side dish at these feasts, both gustatorily and nutritionally!
Kale Salad with Cranberries
Ingredients
- 1 bunch organic curly kale
- 1 whole juice of one lemon
- 3 tablespoons good olive oil
- 2 teaspoons raw local honey
- 1 teaspoon salt , to taste
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- pine nuts or chopped walnuts , optional, to taste
Instructions
- Rip the leaves of the kale from the stems and tear into bite-sized pieces, Place in a large bowl.
- Make your dressing: whisk together the juice of one lemon, 3 tablespoons good olive oil, 2 teaspoons raw local honey, and salt, to taste. Pour about half over your kale and, with your hands, massage into the leaves until they're a bit wilted (they will look a little less curly but will taste a lot better and will be easier to digest). Add a bit more dressing at a time, to taste, then toss cranberries and nuts, if using. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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I used to buy the kale salad from Whole Foods all of the time. I have always wanted to try to make it myself and finally did today with your help! It is delicious!!! Thank you so much!
These kind of comments make our day! So glad you checked this kale salad off your list.
A Tbsp of Kale?? That seems wrong.
Definitely wrong, thanks for catching! We had my old recipes transferred to our newer recipe cards and some of the measurements got messed up. It’s fixed now!
OMG I’ve been eating the raw kale salad for years at Whole Foods and always bragging about it! As of late though, they’ve used Dino kale which totally changes it (and sometimes too much of one of the ingredients) so basically it has been inconsistent. BUT YOUR RECIPE IS SPOT ON! I’m so excited (if you can’t tell lol!). Thank you for sharing this! Now I’m ready to research what other recipes you have 😉
Yay, I’m so glad you loved it!
I am not a kale fan but always trying to find ways to include in my diet. This salad is amazing good! I pretty much polished it off myself at one sitting and will def make again this week for lunch at work. Love how it can be prepared in advance and sit in the fridge and still tastes like you just made it.