Warm Kale Salad

A salad made of red onions sauteed in oil and balsamic vinegar mixed with kale and topped with blue cheese, toasted pecans, and dried cranberries.

During the winter, when the weather is cold I don't always want a cold salad.  Yeah, yeah, I know I live in Hawaii and it doesn't really get cold here but I still get chilly (60s F is cold for me).  Many nights I just want something warm to eat.  This salad is warm, healthy, and comforting.

Don't eat cold #salad during winter have #WarmKaleSalad  [Tweet this]

Just a quick saute and this salad is ready to serve.  It's really no more work than a cold salad.  Just heat a pan, saute the onions in oil until soft, add vinegar and kale and toss until the kale turns bright green.  Serve the salad while it's still warm topped with your favorite toppings.  It's a great alternative to a traditional salad and it's hardy and delicious.

Instead of a cold #salad have Warm #KaleSalad  [Tweet this]

Warm Kale Salad

Servings:  4
Cook time:  under 10 minutes

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup sliced red onions
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 bunch of kale stemmed, torn, and washed
*Toasted pecans or candied pecans
Blue cheese crumbles
Dried cranberries

*To toast the pecans place about 1 cup of pecan halves in a dry non-stick frying pan.  Heat over medium heat, tossing and stirring frequently until darkened and fragrant.  Remove from pan immediately.

Have all the ingredients out and ready because this cooks quickly.

In a large skillet, saute the onion in oil until slightly soft (to your liking...I like mine with a little crunch still).

Add the vinegar and immediately add the kale.  Stir and toss well until kale is hot, bright green, and coated with the oil and vinegar.  The kale should shrink a little, be slightly wilted but not thoroughly cooked, and slightly tender yet still crisp (it doesn't take long).  Just experiment with cooking times worst case scenario if you cook it too long you will end up with Sauteed Kale and too short more like a kale salad both of which are still good.

Remove from the pan immediately, portion into bowls, and top with pecans, cheese, and cranberries.

Serve while it's still warm.

Makes about 4 salads.

Enjoy.

Recipes mentioned in this post:

Candied Pecans

Sauteed Kale

For more salads check out:

Avocado BLT Salad

Lamb Salad

Pork Tenderloin Salad

Linked to:  2 Cup, The Lou Lou Girls, Tickle my Tastebuds, Whimsy, Wonderful, Pretty Pintastic, Best of the Weekend

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Tater Tot Hotdish

Ground beef and veggies in a creamy sauce topped with tater tots.

For those of you not from Minnesota (or like me and married to a Minnesotan), a hotdish is basically a casserole.  Generally, they are made up of four simple ingredients; meat, veggies, cream of mushroom soup, and a starch. I think of casseroles/hotdishes as being wintertime food.  They are simple, warm, and hardy.  A great dinner for a cold, dark day.

#Hotdish is a Minnesotan casserole | #TaterTotHotdish  [Tweet this]

It doesn't feel like a Minnesota winter ever in Hawaii but it gets a little chilly.  I've been here for 4 years and I've become acclimated to Hawaiian living.  It's great to live somewhere where the temperature highs are usually 80s during the summer and 60s for lows in the winter.  This winter has felt colder than the previous ones even though it's really still not winter-like when compared to Minnesota (I know I lived in Minnesota for 2 winters).  So, roll your eyes if you live somewhere really cold but I've been cold this winter and a hotdish sounded perfect (this is my husband's favorite).

Tater Tot #Hotdish is perfect #coldweatherfood  [Tweet this]

Tater Tot Hotdish

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 pound frozen mixed vegetables
1 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
1 soup can full of milk
frozen tater tots

Brown ground beef in a frying pan until fully cooked.  Remove meat from pan into a large bowl.

Pour off most of the grease from the frying pan, leaving about 1 tsp, and saute the onion over medium heat until translucent.  Add the cooked onion to the meat in the large bowl.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the vegetables, soup, and milk to the meat and onions.  Stir and mix well.

Pour into an 8x8 inch baking pan and top with a single layer of tater tots (pack them in there tightly you want "full tot coverage"--says my husband).

Bake at 350F for about 45 minutes.  Then broil it for a few minutes to make the tots crispier if you like.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Enjoy.

Linked to:  2 cup, Teach Me, Lou Lou Girls, Tasty, full Plate, Cook Craft Share, Pretty Pintastic, Best of the Weekend, Merry Monday

For more cold weather food check out:

Bean and Barley Stew

Chicken & Wild Rice Hotdish

Lamb & Guinness Shepherd's Pie

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