Charred Broccoli over Kale Salad with Pickled Onions and Toasted Pine Nuts
A great combination of textures and flavors, this is a great salad for a side or a meal in itself! Crunchy broccoli meets a softened kale, as a great base for tangy pickled onions, and its sweet goat cheese counterpart!
The Achilles Heel. Vinegar. This mysterious liquid is a superman of the pantry, from uses in the garage to desserts, to an infinite amount of kitchen recipes! In this case, we are utilizing this as our taming agent. Kale, by nature, is a tougher green, which often steers people elsewhere for their salad greens. When massaged with acidic liquid, such as vinegar, there is time for the kale to soften, giving great flavor while still providing structure, which is why I find this a perfect fit for a heartier winter salad! Additionally, a great complement to these coarse greens is the red onion, providing a crunchy bite. Raw onion is a personal preference, and can be off-putting at times. For added flavor and to tame this punch a bit, a quick pickling while the broccoli is roasting gives just enough time to mellow down the onion, and infuse a soft vinegar flavor to bring to the party!
The perfect crunch! Charred, roasted, cooked, baked….it’s all the same, right? Not exactly. While fundamentally, these words all assume some heating action usually in an oven, the technique of ‘char’ is actually important for this desired effect. My motive here was to maintain the integrity of the broccoli, to bring a fresh and crisp element to the salad, set atop the soften kale leaves. By turning the oven to a higher temperature and lightly coating the broccoli with oil, the heat creates a blackened effect as it cooks the tender outsides first, lightly softening the rest of the stem, but more slowly, resulting in just the right amount of char. Don’t be afraid of the blackened look as this gives great texture!
Looking for other great roasted vegetable ideas? Check out these other recips:
Charred Brussel Sprout Salad with a Tahini Beet Dressing
Roasted Delicata Squash Salad with Pomegranate and Goat Cheese
Roasted Eggplant and Olive Salad
Roasted Winter Vegetables with a Spicy Soy Balsamic Glaze
Parmesan and Garlic Roasted Green Beans
Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon
Baked Salmon over Roasted Zucchini with a Lemon Spinach Puree
Spiced Lentils and Pine Nuts over Roasted Eggplant
Charred Corn Salsa over Spare Ribs
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Enjoy!
Charred Broccoli over Kale Salad with Pickled Onions and Toasted Pine Nuts
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Kitchen knife
- 2 Mixing bowls
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 4 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/2 squeezed Fresh Lemon
- 4 handfuls Fresh Kale
- 2 cups Broccoli Florets (about 1/2 head)
- 1 clove Garlic
- 1 medium Carrot
- 1/2 medium Red Onion
- 1/4 cup Pine Nuts
- 2 oz Goat Cheese
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Turn oven to 400. In a mixing bowl, add broccoli florets and toss with some olive oil, minced garlic, and salt. Toss well to coat and place in oven on baking sheet. Shake periodically as broccoli is cooking.
- When broccoli is almost done, remove and add pine nuts to the baking sheet. Cook another 3-5 minutes, tossing once to turn, until nuts are golden brown. Remove sheet and set aside.
- Slice red onion into strips and place in a mixing bowl with half apple cider vinegar and half water, until the onion is submerged (about 1/3 cup of each). Set aside to create a quick 'pickling' effect. *This step can be done the night before and stored in a lidded container in the refrigerator.
- In second mixing bowl, add olive oil, apple cider vinegar, juice of lemon, salt and pepper and mix well. Add torn kale leaves, stems removed, and massage liquid in, giving a few minutes to absorb the liquid.
- To serve, plate the moistened kale leaves with matchstick carrots, charred broccoli, pickled onions, pine nuts and goat cheese. Enjoy!Variation-if you'd like a bit more flavor in your salad, try a tsp of dijon mustard in the oil and vinegar sauce before massaging into the kale, or a few sprigs of thyme with the roasted broccoli!
