Dark-Green Asian Salad

Our farmshare season of dark greens recently ended. We are now in the world of zucchini, look for some recipes with that to come!! But, I would call this a new way with dark-greens. A while back, I needed a dish for a work potluck, and so I looked in my farmshare bag. Lots of dark greens! It was that season you know. But “Kale Salad” on the potluck buffet is not what I think most of my coworkers would find very appealing. I knew that I needed to make it really delicious.

Dark greens, with their bitter edge, lend themselves nicely to a vinegary bite. So a nice vinaigrette, with a sweet note (to tame the bitterness) would go nicely, I thought. And it needed a name that sounded good. Dark-green Asian Salad seemed to be less intimidating than Kale Salad, so that is what I went with.
Many people only cook with these dark greens, kale, broccoli, and others, eating them steamed, boiled, or sauteed. This raw usage of them is really good, and the textures—the crunch of the broccoli—and the lettuce-like crispness of the kale, really blend well together. It turned out quite delicious. Dress it just before serving!

If you want more greens in your diet and just don't know how to do it. This is it for sure! The best part? leftovers of the salad go right into tomorrow night's stir fry, dressing and all, and gets re-purposed beautifully into an entirely new dish.

Salad:

• 5 cups chopped kale, or baby kale
• 4 cups of Mizuna leaves, chopped (or spinach or dark green lettuce)
• 3-4 cups chopped broccoli heads and stalks
• ¼ cup candied (crystallized) ginger, diced
• 3 tbs sesame seeds
• ¼ to 1/3 cup chopped peanuts

Dressing

• 2 tbs honey or agave
• 2 tbs water
• 3 tbs Worcestershire
• 3 tbs yellow mustard
• 1 tbs vinegar
• 2 tbs oil (use a chili pepper oil for nice heat kick)
• Salt and pepper