Kale Chips: You Can't Just Have One

“Um.. so what is this again?” my roommate Summer wrinkled her nose as she apprehensively prodded the unfamiliar green vegetable on the counter.

“Kale. It’s really good for you!” She still looked skeptical. Honestly, so was I.

Here’s the trouble with getting your masters in nutrition: you can no longer crawl under the rock of ignorance (at least in the nutrition world). While I have mastered rock crawling when it pertains to politics, in nutrition I am expected to become the expert.

Nutrition research is changing everyday and that means I have to change with it. During an interview I asked our Head of Department, a dietitian himself, what makes a successful dietitian? “Never stop learning; never stop reading. Always stay current.”

The trouble is taking those discoveries and current findings and applying them wisely to life. Discerning which pieces of research are worth modeling and which to disregard is an important part of what dietitians do.

One such discernment came after class when Kale was highlighted as one of the most functional foods that exist. Functional foods are, just that—functional. They serve a function besides their normal roles in the diet. With 88% daily value of vitamin C, 192% beta-carotene and 1,325 % vitamin K, it is a well-packed snack!

It’s healthy reputation preceding it, the kale sat looming on our kitchen counter practically shouting obscenities at us as we eyed it with skepticism. I had experienced kale once before—it was bitter and the more I thought about it, the more it reminded me of a cross between eating grass and biting fingernails that had been soaked in nail polish remover. How was I going to make this taste good?

            A vague recollection of an idea popped into mind. Someone once had mentioned something called “kale chips.” Hmmm, vegetable tasting like chips—can’t go wrong with that!  So I did what every good cook does…I googled it! I found a similar recipe while adding my own flare.

            The time came for sampling. All of the roommates gathered cautiously around the crunchy vegetable. We looked at the kale, the kale looked at us. Someone had to be brave. I took the first bite—marvelous! Who knew that nail polish remover could taste like popcorn! Once everyone got a taste, it was unanimous! I had discovered an altenative to our Gilmore Girls popcorn! Even Summer stopped wrinkling her nose.

            Since that historic day, Kale chips have become a staple in our household. In fact, I now use it as a secret weapon. I recently traveled to Washington D.C. to visit the boyfriend (David) and stayed with his grandparents, uncle and great great aunt. As a thank you for hosting me, I volunteered to cook dinner one night. I whipped out my secret weapon and it didn’t let me down. I think they like me! Before dinner started, David’s grandma asked me what I usually serve the kale chips out of—I laughed. You see, at home they never make it off of the baking sheet.

Kale Chips:

1 bag or about 1 lb fresh kale

olive oil

sea salt

pepper

(very small amount) ground red pepper (optional)

parchment (wax) paper

Wash and cut kale. Mix leaves in bowl with a couple tablespoons of olive oil, salt, pepper and red pepper. Cover the baking sheet with wax paper and arrange the kale in single layer on the sheet. Bake at 400 degrees F for roughly 10 minutes, shaking once. I suggest letting them get as crispy as possible without burning them.