What is Kale and Cranberry Salad?
Kale and Cranberry Salad is a great dish to use for meal prep for a side, yummy lunch, or a holiday dish. The kale leaves are massaged with the olive oil to help soften the leaves, then it is tossed with crunchy almonds, cranberries, and salty feta cheese crumbles. It is really the perfect combination of sweet and salty and best of all it is healthy!
If you haven’t tried massaged kale you are missing out. After you work the leaves with the oil it really changes the texture of them and makes it a little more palatable for some. For others, it just takes an already delicious leafy food and makes it even better!
Kale is affordable, especially when bought in bulk, and dried cranberries and nuts stretch a long way, the bags last forever! This salad feels fancy but comes together with simple, cost-effective ingredients. It will look so pretty in your meal prep dishes or on the side of a perfectly roasted turkey at the holidays.
Why You’ll Love This Kale and Cranberry Salad Recipe
If you are looking for flavor you found it! This recipe has a ton of bold flavors from the kale to the cranberries to the feta, yet they all work together perfectly! Between all the flavors there is the textural difference in the crunch of the onion, the creaminess of the cheese, and the bit of the kale. You are seriously going to be wondering how something this yummy can be so healthy.
Most of the ingredients in the recipe are pantry staples. You will probably be able to find all the ingredients in the cupboard or find a yummy substitute easily. You can use any nut you want that you can chop up into smaller bites so they will kinda stick and coat the leaves.
This is a perfect recipe to make for a holiday dinner or a quick and easy weekday meal prep. You can easily add some sauteed or air fried chicken, click the links for the recipes I like to use, to round out the meal if taking it to work.
This is also a pretty allergy friendly salad. It is naturally gluten-free and low carb. You can also easily make this a dairy free salad by skipping the cheese if you want. If you are going to do this, I would suggest using salted nuts this way you aren’t loosing the flavor.
Tips for the Best Kale and Cranberry Salad
Massage the kale leaves with the olive oil. So drizzle on the olive oil and then use your hands to quickly and gently mix or rub the oil into the leaves. This process will help remove the bitterness from the kale leaves and it will also help to soften them.
If you can find it in the store using baby kale will also add a lighter flavor and a more tender texture. However, I usually just use the chopped bagged kale from the store. This makes it a quick and easy dish that you are going to be able to make on a dime and won’t have to go to any specialty stores to find it.
To get maximum flavor, let the kale and cranberry salad sit and chill for 10 to 15 minutes before you serve it. Whenever you can let food chill for a few minutes and rest it will taste better.
Feta not for you or you don’t have it on hand? No worries! You can easily use goat cheese if that is more your style. If you are a dairy free girly there are many options you can sub out, check out this article and see if there are any you want to try!
Meal Prep and Storage Tips for Kale and Cranberry Salad
This post contains affiliate links, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Dressings tend to “cook” the leaves of a salad if they are on them for too long. You can easily remedy this by not putting the dressing on until you are going to eat it. The leaves will have a better texture if you dress it 10-15 minutes before eating it.
Meal prep it without the dressing by mixing the rest of the ingredients in a big bowl and dividing it out into single serving sizes. These are my favorite glass dressing containers. The lids fit perfectly and they hold just the right amount of any condiment you want for your lunch! I love the glass and the ease of use of the lids, click here to add them to your Amazon cart!
With the holidays coming up again soon, you can offer to bring a healthy and delicious side now that you have this kale and cranberry salad recipe. Make it ahead of time and have the dressing on the side then you will be ready to head out the door in minutes.
Other Recipes You Might Like
Simple Apple and Turkey Salad with Maple Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Method
- Wash and dry the kale, tear the leaves into bite sized pieces.
- Coat the leaves in about 1 T olive oil and a small sprinkle of salt. Then use your hands and massage the leaves, this helps to keep the leaves from being bitter. Set aside.
- Next, prepare the dressing by putting 3 T olive oil, 2 T balsamic vinegar, 1 T honey, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Taste it and adjust seasoning as you wish.
- To the bowl of kale leaves, add the dried cranberries, feta, seeds/nuts, and red onion.
- Drizzle with the dressing.
- Toss to coat all of the salad ingredients in dressing.
- This is also great with turkey slices in a wrap!