Kale Salad With Cranberries and Cashews

Name: Kale Salad With Cranberries and Cashews
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 good-size bunch kale, washed and dried; Olive oil or other healthy vegetable oil, as needed; 2/3 cup dried cranberries; 1/2 cup crushed toasted cashews, or pumpkin seeds; 1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise; 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice, to taste

Recipe from Nava Atlas

Adapted by Tara Parker-Pope

Total Time: 10 minutes
Rating: 4(407)
Notes: Read community notes

There are so many ways to vary this salad: You can toss in some slivered baby carrots, add diced pears or apples, substitute another kind of nut, or add a bit of thinly shredded red cabbage for extra color or sliced celery or bok choy for extra crunch. Even in its simple form, as presented here, it’s luscious and festive. —Tara Parker-Pope

Featured in: Well's Vegetarian Thanksgiving 2011

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings

1good-size bunch kale, washed and dried
Olive oil or other healthy vegetable oil, as needed
⅔cup dried cranberries
½cup crushed toasted cashews, or pumpkin seeds
½cup vegan mayonnaise
1 to 2tablespoons lemon juice, to taste

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Strip the kale leaves off the stems. Cut into ribbons and place in a large bowl.
Step 2
With a little olive oil rubbed into your palms, massage the kale for a minute or so, until it becomes bright green and softens a bit.
Step 3
Stir in the remaining ingredients and serve at room temperature.

Ratings

4 out of 5

407 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Mavis6 years ago

I have arthritis and the massaging is difficult, but running a rolling pin over the cut up kale on a wooden cutting board breaks it down very nicely.

Marjorie L6 years ago

This was a big hit at a pot luck meal this evening. I added a few pinches of sea salt to the bowl along with the olive oil while massaging. I soaked the cranberries in warm water, then dried them them on a towel.

I used half Greek yogurt and half mayo for the dressing, and added some fruit vinegar (apple cider vinegar would also be good), along with the lemon juice. I served the dressing on the side, and many folks thought the salad was great with just the oil and salt, and no extra dressing.

Bernie C 3B S6 years ago

You-all have given me courage to experiment with foods. I am a widower and novice cook.
Just made lunch salad w/carrots,raisins,left-over kale from Blue Apron,slivered almonds,& broken pretzels for the salt & fun. Dressing of yogurt & mayo from this recipe-no oil ,cranberries lemon juice.

Katherine6 years ago

My family (including teen daughter) is in LOVE with this salad. We make it weekly. A few tweaks:
- I don't massage the kale (just chop small).
- I use Hellman's mayo (not vegan).
- I whisk dressing separately in a bowl first, then drizzle on salad. I use more lemon juice, less mayo, add a little olive oil, to make the dressing a bit runny, rather than thick mayonnaisey.
GREAT, healthy, hearty salad.

Colleen6 years ago

An easy way to massage kale is to put it in a mixer with a paddle attachment and run it for a few minutes

Ddelambert6 years ago

This was very good, but I tweaked it a bit. I used sliced almonds since I didn't have any hazelnuts. Also, half a cup of mayonnaise seemed too heavy, so I mixed just a couple of tablespoons of mayo (Best Foods, not vegan) with the lemon juice and then tossed the salad with it. It was just barely creamy and very lemony, not heavy. Finally, I added some sliced grilled chicken breast to make it a whole meal. Really tasty!

Christie6 years ago

Great idea!

Carolyn R6 years ago

I served this to a group that wasn’t fond of kale, so I used about 3/4 spinach and 1/4 kale. The kale flavor was present, but didn’t jump out at you and they all enjoyed it. The leftovers were still very good the following day.

Dr Joy6 years ago

This was delicious. I liked it without the mayo dressing. I had hazelnuts in the pantry so used those chopped. Definitely will make again!

Sarah3 months ago

This salad has been a staple in my life since I found it in Nava Atlas's Vegan Holiday Kitchen. Probably 10 years ago. Like some of the other commenters, I use less vegenaise and more lemon, add coarse salt, and whisk the dressing separately. I often pair it with a saucy tofu parmesan. Very very good.

yummy and heres what i would do different next time8 months ago

I added more lemon juice (my go to dressing for kale salad is lemon forward) and salt and pepper to the dressing. In halving the recipe overall used less dressing and cashews but all of the yummy cranberries. Love the idea of plumping them up, so will try that next time.

spbjackson1 year ago

Excellent! Added Greek yogurt (about 50/50) w mayo & lemon to taste. Added apple & used Thai spiced cashews

Linda2 years ago

Plumping the cranberries in warm orange juice adds tang and flavor

ek perrow3 years ago

The recipe as written is fine. I didn't have vegan mayonnaise substituted Avocado Mayo. I added a chopped up granny Smith apple to provide some tartness. I will make this salad again perhaps adding some crushed red pepper.

Matthew5 years ago

Yummy dish that lasted a few days as a side dish.

Carolyn R6 years ago

Colleen6 years ago

An easy way to massage kale is to put it in a mixer with a paddle attachment and run it for a few minutes

PJ Salis6 years ago

To tenderize kale: With clean handx, grab a small bunch of raw kale, remove any thick stems, put the bunch in the palm of one hand, and roll it around with the other palm (as you do to make meatballs) until it softens as desired.

Katelynd6 years ago

I added bacon and used real mayo. YUM.

Edna josell6 years ago

Fabulous
I used baby kale and actually chopped it up quite fine so it's easier to eat
Have made it four times already
Wonderful salad

KSWinCA6 years ago

Amazingly simple. I was skeptical, but it's delicious. Have made it both with kale, and when the kale was gone, spinach. I added about twice the amount of lemon juice to give it a bit more citrus flavor.