kale salad

my new go to fave kale salad recipe is a great crowd pleaser. even more exciting (...I mean getting people to try kale & like it for the 1st time is pretty good...) is the fact that the dressing is made from scratch and has all common household ingredients in it (plus no preservatives or junk).

kale salad
what you need:

• 1 bunch of green kale
• 1/2 cup silvered/shaved almonds
• 1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup craisins
• dressing (below)

what to do:
chop kale (leave off the center vein)...add everything else in the bowl & toss...literally its that easy. personally I like the taste after it sits for 1-2 hours, but thats not essential. you can let it sit for 1/2 a day if you need to as it takes a lot to soften kale! you will have dressing left over based on the amount of kale you use. add dressing a little at a time to avoid over saturating it.

lemon vinaigrette dressing
what you need:

• 2TBSP white wine vinegar
• 2TBST fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp ground dijon mustard
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp lemon zest (some times if I'm lazy I skip this part)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp sugar

what to do: 

put it in a jar & shake it or in a pyrex & whisk it! 

best gazpacho ever!

if you know me, you know i detest tomatoes. ketchup literally makes me cringe. however i have recently found a recipe (involving tomatoes) that i do love! its from my across the street neighbor, kerri, and divine (probably because it has onions in it)! it is sooooo fresh & you can taste the "healthiness" of it!

what you need:
1 28-32oz can of peeled tomatoes
1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
1 red onion
1 hot house cucumber
2 cloves garlic
apple cider vinegar
salt
pepper

what you do: 
wash all the veggies. peel the cucumber. take the core out of the peppers.

in a food processor put the tomatoes, peppers, onions & garlic. chop for a while (till there are no more big chunks)

add salt, pepper & a few splashes of apple cider vinegar as well as the cucumber (cut up into large chunks). chop with the processor until the cucumber is minced up. refrigerate and enjoy!