Kale and Coconut Salad

I've had this recipe on my radar to try ever since I saw it on a couple of my favorite blogs- first Shutterbean and then Joy the Baker.  After seeing many bloggers posting recipes from Heidi Swanson's cookbook Super Natural Every Day, which this recipe is from, I had to buy it myself.   I guess you could call it peer pressure- but the good kind, not the jumping off a cliff kind.  After going to the farmer's market today, and buying a ginormous bunch of kale, I knew that tonight was the perfect night to finally try out this recipe.  I already had the coconut from some granola I made a few weeks ago, and the other ingredients are all pantry staples for me.... it was just meant to be!  Perfect for a night when my meat-loving boyfriend is at work, and it's just me at home, left to my own devices.... which also includes watching episodes of "Friends" back to back to back, menu planning for next week, and general laziness!  Hey, I already did my workout this morning, so that justifies being lazy for the rest of the day!  I guess this is what constitutes a wild and crazy Friday night when you're 29 1/2 :)

This turned out to be everything I wanted it to be.  Crunchy, chewy, salty, and just downright tasty.  I loved it and could easily have eaten the whole batch in one sitting.  Darn you portion control!!  I had some brown rice in my freezer that I heated up to go with this (seriously one of the best things to do ever- precooking long cooking grains in big batches and freezing for later), and squirted on a touch of sriracha (thanks Joy the Baker for the idea!), and it was sooooooo good.  I didn't even use half of my kale for this salad, so I envision lots of this salad in the next few days- I could easily eat it for every meal.

Kale and Coconut Salad
Serves 4

Ingredients:
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp shoyu, tamari or soy sauce
3 1/2 cups lightly packed cups kale (3.5 oz/100 grams)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened large-flake coconut (3 oz/85 grams)
1 cup uncooked farro, brown rice, quinoa or other whole grain

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook your grain according to package directions.
3. Trim the stems of your kale, remove the large ribs, and chop.  Mix the kale and coconut together in a large bowl.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, sesame oil, and soy sauce.  Pour about 2/3 of it into the bowl with the kale and coconut, and toss well.
5. Spread kale and coconut mixture on a large baking sheet, and bake for 11-18 minutes, stirring once or twice.  Bake until the coconut is golden brown. and the kale is crispy. 
6. Remove from oven, taste, and if desired add more of the leftover dressing.
7. Serve on top of your grain.

Enjoy!!

Source: Super Natural Every Day