Summer Sorensen

First of all, I’ll admit that is an outrageous title. (I’m only a little bit sorry about that.)

Why is it outrageous? Of the several reasons that come to mind, the first is that kale is not delicious. If someone tells me, “I love kale!” they will not only get the sideways eye from me, I will also instantly know that I can’t trust them.

Why? Because no one actually likes kale. It’s the food equivalent of saying you enjoy getting root canals. In its natural state, it embodies tough, hard to chew, untasty disappointment.

Since it is so healthy, we just keep finding ways to squeeze it down. The good news is, I discovered a way to make it that elevates it to the status of dessert. Not joking. Read the following, try it, and prepare to dish up seconds. Food & recipe posts are far from a focus for me, but I felt this needed to be shared.

I’ve got to give some credit to my cousin and chef extraordinaire, Jake. This idea began as a creation he brought to a family dinner. I just added to it for extra flare.

Put quite simply, this recipe involves adding bacon, garlic, and onion and sauteeing all of it in bacon grease. Here are the specifics.

Serving for 2:

• 4-5 kale leaves, stripped and chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped (fresh garlic adds more flavor than the pre-minced jarred stuff)
• 2 slices bacon
• 1/2 red onion

Directions:

1. Cook bacon to taste in frying pan
   

2. Chop other ingredients while bacon cooks

3. Remove bacon to paper towels; leave grease in the pan

4. Add chopped garlic to skillet; allow to cook for about a minute

5. Add chopped onion and stir; cook until onion and garlic mixture becomes deliciously fragrant

6. Add chopped kale to pan, stir well to coat leaves with bacon grease. Cook until kale is heated through and begins to shrink (2-3 minutes).

7. Remove from heat into a serving dish

8. Consume immediately while vowing to never eat raw kale again

That’s it!

Often when I make sauteed veggies as a side dish, there are a few left over. In this case, my husband and I cleaned out the bowl and wished there was more. It is that good.

For a bacon-free alternative (I hear there are people out there who don’t eat it – strange!), try subbing the bacon grease for olive oil. I haven’t tried it that way, but I imagine it would still be reasonably good.

If you try this dish, let me know what you think of it. If you have other suggestions on how to make kale tasty, drop a comment!