Warm Bacon & Kale Salad | Salad Recipes

With cooler temps, we crave heartier meals. One thing that might not seem the most obvious as a hearty dinner is the salad. Salads are reserved for warm spring days and hot summers. They’re the best friend to maintaining bikini bodies and getting in shape for warmer weather. They can be fall and winter friendly though too. The problem with all these hearty meals that are rich and heavy is that they can make you feel like you’ve gained a dozen pounds after one week. So while you want a comforting meal for dinner tonight, maybe you want something lighter on the belly. This salad is anything but uber healthy, I mean...there’s bacon involved. But it is packed with great ingredients that are vitamin and protein rich. It’s also heartier than your classic Caesar salad. It’s a great mix-up for cooler nights when you want something you can feel good about.

Kale has a tendency to be rough and bitter. It’s not my favorite leafy green which I think many people would agree with. There are a variety of ways to work with kale but one in particular that will get rid of the bitter edge and soften the texture is sauteing it. Instead of using olive oil to saute the kale, this recipe uses some of the leftover bacon grease. It blends the flavors together and adds an extra depth to the salad. You want the kale to turn a deep green and the leaves to be noticeably softer but you don’t want it wilted completely.

The rosemary potatoes are the icing on the cake for this salad. It adds a hearty quality that makes this dish a winner for fall and winter. The rosemary adds a beautiful, herb flavoring that balance the rest of the flavors in the dish. The trick is to roast the potatoes long enough so the outside gets nice and crunchy but the inside stays soft and fluffy. Cooking at a higher heat level will give that crunchiness. Have a little patience though because it will take a minute for them to reach perfection. Finally, the hard boiled eggs add a pop of protein to round the dish out.

Warm Bacon + Kale Salad with Eggs & Roasted Rosemary Potatoes
Ingredients:
4 small Yukon Gold Potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. Dried Rosemary
1 lb. Bacon
1 small Shallot, finely chopped
2 Garlic Gloves, minced
1 bunch Kale, torn into small pieces
4 Hard Boiled Eggs, sliced
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
1 - Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Drizzle potatoes with olive oil and mix with rosemary, salt and pepper. Roast 30-40 minutes until slightly crisp but still soft on the inside.

2 - Cok the bacon in a skillet. Place on a plate line with paper towels to drain the grease. Pour out all but a tablespoon of the bacon grease out of the pan. Add shallots and garlic. Cook 1-2 minutes until softened. Add the kale, season with salt and pepper and cook until dark green and softened but not completely wilted.

3 - Roughly chop the bacon. In each bowl, late a bed of kale. Top with the potatoes, eggs and bacon. Serve.