The inspiration for this salad came from a fellow CNM blogger http://www.suppersinseason.com/ . I ve made a first trial of the salad last week and I will definitely prepare it for our Christmas table as the pecans and dried fruit, figs and cranberries, give it quite a festive note. It is dressed in delicious savoury slightly acidic tamari and orange sauce, which balances perfectly the sweetness of the dried fruits. Tamari is a gluten free soya sauce which is used to replace salt and give an umami flavour to Asian dishes, so don’t add any extra salt. I used kale in this one, which I massaged with olive oil for around 10 mins. Yes you read right, you need to massage the kale but pressing firmly with your thumbs, as the massage gives kale a softer texture, tastes some of the bitterness away and makes easier to digest. So please don’t skip this essential step. This is also a great opportunity to channel some of your positive energy to the Christmas food that you are preparing for your beloved ones. If kale does not float your boat you could replace with spinach.
Ingredients for 2 people
- 200gr of organic kale or spinach
- 1 handful of pecans
- 4-5 dried figs, soaked in water to become softer and cut in smaller pieces
- 1 handful of dried cranberries
For the sauce:
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup tamari sauch
- Juice of 1 large orange
- Wash kale thoroughly and remove any stalks. Place in a bowl with 2 tbs of olive oil and massage by pressing the leaves with your thumbs. Massage for about 10 mins until the kale acquires a dark green vibrant colour.
- Add the pecans, diced figs and cranberries.
- Mix all of the sauce ingredients in a cup and pour over the salad.