I’m back and reinspired to blog! Kale is my new BFF.

Hi my friends!  It’s been a long time. Almost a year since my last post. But I’m feeling reinvigorated to start blogging again! Somewhere between moving to the west coast, starting a new job, and having a husband traveling non-stop, I stopped cooking fun, inventive meals. It’s just not as much fun to cook for one! I’ve had many nights of going to yoga class and coming home to eat cereal/ salads for dinner since they don’t require any pots and pans   But I miss cooking those wonderfully delicious and healthy meals.
Now that I’m back, I’m going to approach this whole blogging thing a little differently. As opposed to always coming up with my own unique recipes, I want to write about some of the best recipes, tools and culinary lessons that inspire me in the kitchen. This week’s inspiration: Kale!
Not only is Kale one of the most nutritious vegetables (read more here about the health benefits), but when prepared right, it’s almost addicting. Really! Tip: remove the stems – always!   Hopefully that’s not where all the good vitamins are, but I find them tough and a little bitter.   Here are 3 of my favorite Kale recipes.

Orecchiette with Kale

I found this recipe in cooking light and it looked so good, I had to give it a try.  When I made this recipe, it was the first time I ever bought kale.  I skipped on the bacon and used cherry tomatoes instead of sun dried.  Both ways I’m sure are delicious.

Kale Chips:

These actually taste like potato chips.  And are definitely addicting.  If you’re serving them at a party, buy an extra head of kale – they will get eaten.   Have fun with the spices and come up with some unique flavors.  Just be careful not to cook too long – they can get a burnt taste.

Kale Salad

The dressing on this reminds me of a caesar salad – expect it’s better for you!  I even like to add a little Dijon mustard to give it a thicker consistency. Since I discovered this recipe about 3 weeks ago, I’ve been making it at least twice a week.   And it’s from one of my favorite blogs – 101 cookbooks.   Love it!