collard greens with spicy ginger dressing and seed brittle

Wait… don’t let the collard greens in the title of this post scare you away, especially you Amanda. You can also use KALE in this recipe, so read on if you’re a fan of either of these wonder greens.

I originally wanted to call this salad kale and collard greens with spicy ginger dressing, as they are both interchangeable in this recipe, but that would just confuse people, so I decided to use collard greens as my post title. I assumed most of you have not tried raw collard greens, (hey, this was my first time eating them) and that this might intrigue you a bit. Plus, I wanted to break out and feature a different green for you to try instead of the usual kale. So, if Marin mama can try a new green, then you can to…

For those of you that aren’t familiar with collard greens, they’re in the same family as kale. I’ve actually made this recipe with kale on 3 occasions, as I couldn’t find collard greens in my local store. Below is a photo of the salad made with kale.  See, it pretty much looks the same.I saw this recipe Bon Appetit and immediately knew I wanted to make it. I loved the look of the salad with the bright vibrant greens and crunchy seed brittle (to be honest, the seed brittle is what really drew me to this salad, as I love crunchy seedy things in my salads). The dressing sounded uniquely interesting and fresh with the combination of honey, ginger, toasted sesame oil and red pepper flakes.

This salad is the perfect mix of spicy, sweet and tart. The brittle adds a great sweet and spicy crunch to the massaged greens, and is different then the usual toasted nut you find in salads. Zoe and her friend Olivia adored this salad, but Eli was not a huge fan. He prefers my lacinato kale salad, and LOVES my kale and ricotta salata salad.  So, it’s not necessary a little kid salad, but one for the teen and up crowd!

The crunchy spicy seed brittle is the bomb and is a recipe on it’s own! It’s so good that I found myself sneaking bites of it all day!  It’s crunchy, spicy and sweet at the same time. YUM! I honestly love crunchy seedy snacks, and I’m actually going to make up the brittle sans the red pepper flakes to top on my morning cereal!

collard greens with spicy ginger dressing and seed brittle:

serves 4
recipe from Bon Appetit

for the salad :

• 1 bunch collard greens or lacinato kale, de-stemmed and thinly sliced – click here to see how to de-stem and thinly slice kale – de-stemming and slicing collard greens is the same as kale 
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated peeled fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon fine kosher or sea salt

for the spicy seed brittle:

• 2 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds
• 1 tablespoon raw pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon raw sesame seeds
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon water

First off, here’s what collard greens look like in case you’re not familiar.  When buying collard greens, you want to look for bunches with stiff stems and broad, sturdy vibrant leaves.  Let’s begin by toasting up the seed brittle. In a small bowl whisk together the 2 teaspoons honey, 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes and 1 tablespoon water until well combined.Toast the sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing until the sesame seeds are lightly browned, about 3 minutes.

Add the the honey mixture to the toasted seeds, stirring, until the seeds clump and stick together, about 3 minutes.

 Using a spatula, scrape the seed mixture onto some parchment paper to cool for a bit.

 I usually wash, de-stem and store my greens when I get home from the grocery store, because it saves me time and another step when it comes to making up a salad.  You can check out my post on how-to keep kale and other greens fresh if you’re interested in saving that extra step as well. If you haven’t washed, de-stemmed and thinly sliced your greens, now is the time to do that.  Click here to see how to de-stem and thinly slice kale. De-stemming and thinly slicing collard greens is the same as kale.When your greens are sliced thin and ready to go, it’s time to make the dressing.

The only part of the dressing that takes some time is peeling and grating the ginger.  You can use the back of a spoon to peel ginger, just scrape the back of the spoon against the ginger to peel off the skin.Then grate the ginger using a microplane grater. It will take some time and a bit of ginger to get the 1 1/2 teaspoons, but it’s worth it! Get out a small bowl and whisk together the 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons grated ginger, 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes and the 1 teaspoon honey.

Whisk in the 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil and the 3 tablespoons olive oil until the dressing is well combined. Now it’s time to massage the collard greens and/or kale.  First off, I want to show you what the collard greens look like before they’re massaged with the dressing. See how full and fluffy they are?Add the dressing to the greens and then massage the greens. Massage it well so that all of the greens absorbs the dressing. When I say, massage your greens, I literally mean, get your hands in there and massage it. When you massage collard greens and kale, not only does it absorb the dressing, but it also breaks down the collard greens/kale almost like when it’s cooked, and takes away any bitter flavor. The greens will darken in color, reduce down in size and become glossy.

Below is a picture of the collard greens massaged with the dressing.Below is a picture of the kale massaged with the dressing.Serve up the salad and top it with the spicy seed mixture! The spicy seed mixture really enhances the salad and adds a bit of sweet crunchy flair to the salad. Be sure to break up the seed brittle into tiny pieces when you top it on your salad.

Note: I would only add the spicy seed mixture to the salad if you’re going to eat it right away. If you’re going store the salad, then reserve the seed mixture to the side, as it will get soggy sitting in the massaged greens.

Also I found that this salad was best day one. It was fine day two, but not as great as it was day one.

I had this salad for lunch the other day topped with some roasted sweet potato, and it was amazing!

How many of you have tried collard greens before?

If you’ve tried them, what is your favorite way to eat them?

Also, if you try this salad, let me know what you think! I would love to hear if this salad turns some of you into a collard greens fan!

If you’re a fan of kale salads, then you’ve come to the right place, as I’m know as the kale mama in Marin. My favorite kale salad of all time is my lacinato kale salad. This is the salad that has turned kale haters into kale lovers. I love it so much that I even created a video on how to make this salad.  This salad will last for 3 days and is a great make ahead salad.

5 from 1 reviews

collard greens with spicy ginger dressing and seed brittle

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

You can use either kale or collard greens in this recipe, as they are interchangeable. This salad is the perfect mix of spicy, sweet and tart.

Author: Marin mama cooks

Recipe type: salad

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• for the salad:
• 1 bunch collard greens or lacinato kale, de-stemmed and thinly sliced - click here to see how to de-stem and thinly slice kale - de-stemming and slicing collard greens is the same as kale
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1½ teaspoons finely grated peeled fresh ginger
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• ¼ teaspoon fine kosher or sea salt
• for the spicy seed brittle:
• 2 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds
• 1 tablespoon raw pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon raw sesame seeds
• 2 teaspoons honey
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon water

Instructions

1. Let's begin by toasting up the seed brittle. In a small bowl whisk together the 2 teaspoons honey, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes and 1 tablespoon water until well combined.
2. Toast the sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing until the sesame seeds are lightly browned, about 3 minutes.
3. Add the the honey mixture to the toasted seeds, stirring, until the seeds clump and stick together, about 3 minutes.
4. Using a spatula, scrape the seed mixture onto some parchment paper to cool for a bit.
5. I usually wash, de-stem and store my greens when I get home from the grocery store, because it saves me time and another step when it comes to making up a salad. You can check out my post on how-to keep kale and other greens fresh if you're interested in saving that extra step as well.
6. If you haven't washed, de-stemmed and thinly sliced your greens, now is the time to do that. Check out my post on how to de-stem and thinly slice kale. By the way, de-stemming and thinly slicing collard greens is the same as kale.
7. When your greens are sliced thin and ready to go, it's time to make the dressing.
8. The only part of the dressing that takes some time is peeling and grating the ginger. You can use the back of a spoon to peel ginger, just scrape the back of the spoon against the ginger to peel off the skin.
9. Then grate the ginger using a microplane grater. It will take some time and a bit of ginger to get the 1½ teaspoons, but it's worth it!
10. Get out a small bowl and whisk together the 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1½ teaspoons grated ginger, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes and the 1 teaspoon honey.
11. Whisk in the 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil and the 3 tablespoons olive oil until the dressing is well combined.
12. Now it's time to massage the collard greens and/or kale. Add the dressing to the greens and then massage the greens. Massage it well so that all of the greens absorbs the dressing. When I say, massage your greens, I literally mean, get your hands in there and massage it. When you massage collard greens and kale, not only does it absorb the dressing, but it also breaks down the collard greens/kale almost like when it’s cooked, and takes away any bitter flavor. The greens will darken in color, reduce down in size and become glossy.
13. Serve up the salad and top it with the spicy seed mixture! The spicy seed mixture really enhances the salad and adds a bit of sweet crunchy flair to the salad. Be sure to break up the seed brittle into tiny pieces when you top it on your salad.
14. Note: I would only add the spicy seed mixture to the salad if you're going to eat it right away. If you're going store the salad, then reserve the seed mixture to the side, as it will get soggy sitting in the massaged greens.

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