What do I do with all this kale? (recipes)

We have been blessed with an abundant supply of kale. I just love that God provided a way to allow us to continue enjoying fresh greens even into the cold months! The variety that we have is supposed to be hardy to -10°, time will tell if it truly does make it through the winter. Chris is going to build a mini greenhouse over the row to lend some extra protection on those extra bitter days/nights. I don't know about you, but I wasn't previously familiar with this leafy green so I resorted to scouring the internet for inspiration on how to serve it. I'm not one to follow a recipe, so I took bits and pieces from many and I'd like to share a couple of those with you.

The first recipe is for a kale salad. I've take this to a couple of church and family functions and each time the bowl was emptied very quickly and with many compliments. It really is delicious!

Kale Salad

3T white balsamic vinegar (if you don't have white, I'm sure regular balsamic would be fine)

1T honey

1 T olive oil

1 t salt

1 bunch of kale, thick center ribs removed, chopped into smallish pieces

A handful of almonds, chopped (or anything crunchy really - pine nuts or sunflower seeds would probably be good)

A handful of dried cranberries(craisins)

A handful of freshly shredded parmesean

Since I've taken this salad places, I find that the easiest way to do it is combine vinegar, honey, olive oil, and salt in a glass jar and shake until well blended. Put the chopped almonds, craisins, and cheese in a separate jar. About 15 minutes or so before serving, toss it all together and let the flavors meld at room temperature. Mmmmm... : )

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This second recipe is a twist on a traditional Irish dish. It's called colcannon. I had never heard of it, but it received a big thumbs up from my family. I found many colcannon recipes that called for various things like cabbage and leek that I did not have on hand. So, you can definitely dress this up with anything you think sounds good, but this is how I made it.

Colcannon

2 1/2 lbs potatoes

1/2 C butter

3/4 C milk

4 bacon slices (Chris said it could have used more, but he loves bacon)

2 green onions, chopped (I'll use more next time)

4 C de-ribbed, chopped kale

salt and pepper to taste

Scrub, peel (if you do that sort of thing- I prefer to leave the peel on), quarter, and boil your potatoes until tender. Drain and mash potatoes.

While your potatoes are boiling, over low heat combine the butter and milk until it's all melty and hot.

Once both those are done, fold the butter/milk into the potatoes and season liberally with salt and pepper.

In a heavy pot/Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until brown and crisp. Remove, drain on some paper towels, and chop into little bits. You should have a very thing layer of bacon grease in your pan. If your bacon was really fatty you may drain some off. Otherwise, add the green onions to the pot and cook for a couple minutes. Then, toss in the kale and stir that around until it's just wilted, about 3 minutes. 

Now, dump your potatoes, kale, and bacon all together and stir it up. If you think it needs more salt/pepper, now is the time. Serve while hot.

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Are you familiar with kale? What are some ways that you've enjoyed it?