FOOD: Spicy, Warm Kale Salad with Sausage

Hi. Jen from Lemon Drop Love here. Do you ever find yourself burned out on the same old salads? I do. Sometimes their texture and flavors are all so similar, they just end up tasting the same. When this happens and I still want to get my veggie fix, I like to experiment with different kinds of ingredients. Hence, my new favorite---spicy, warm kale salad. The jalapeno infused dressing packs a ton of flavor and the kale holds up to all of the warm ingredients. This is the perfect salad when you feel like a hot meal but don’t necessarily want to break the diet with comfort food. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

12 oz. grape tomatoes
10 oz. kale chopped (ribs removed)
8 oz. spicy Italian sausages (2 large links)
3 jalapenos
1/2 cup olive oil plus 3 tablespoons
4 oz. ricotta cheese
1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Grill sausage links on medium heat for 15 minutes, turning often.
• Meanwhile, place tomatoes on a baking pan and drizzle with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
• Bake tomatoes for 20 minutes or until bursting and slightly charred on the outside.
• Slice jalapenos and sauté in 1/2 cup olive oil for about 6 minutes or until jalapenos are soft and you can begin to smell their spicy aroma.
• While the jalapenos are cooking, slice the cooked sausage links in to thin slices.
• Remove pan from heat and discard jalapenos, but keep the oil in the pan.
• Place kale into the infused oil and toss until all the leaves are coated in the oil. The heat from the oil and pan will warm the kale and soften it slightly.
• Combine the kale, tomatoes and sausage in a large bowl. Add ricotta cheese and the juice from 1/2 of a lemon and toss.

Serves 4.

-post by jen costea