I’ve written about my obsession with Elephants Deli before when I shared my recipe for their tomato orange soup with you all. The saga continues here with a variation on my mom’s favorite salad from their selection. Their Willamette Valley salad has fresh greens, grapes, blue cheese, and hazelnuts- a tribute to the produce from the area.
Being winter, this salad pairs nicely next to a heavier dish. The kale is substantive and all the add-ins add lots of crunch, savory flavors, and sweetness! You can mess around with these ingredients and follow the Elephants’ blue cheese idea if you’d like, but I prefer a less smelly cheese (I’m still an amateur, guys, haven’t grown to enjoy that one yet).
Willamette Valley Kale Salad (makes 2 salads)
- 4 c kale
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 pink lady apple
- 1 to 2 oz fresh asiago cheese
- Handful of roasted hazelnuts
Remove stems from the kale and finely chop it up into bite-size pieces (or smaller). In a big bowl, mix the kale with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar and toss it a few times. Let it sit so that the kale softens a bit.
Chop up your cheese, apple, and hazelnuts as you like. Split the kale between two bowls and top with the selection!
Love from Oregon,
Marisa
petit4chocolatier says
Perfect salad to begin the New Year with!! Looks and sounds delicious 🙂