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Make Ahead

Northern Spy's Kale Salad

by:
January  6, 2012
4.8
20 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Prep time 30 minutes
  • Cook time 40 minutes
  • Serves 2
Author Notes

This salad is ideal for making ahead for company (or tomorrow's lunch) and has been a mainstay on the menu at Northern Spy Food Co. in Manhattan's East Village since they opened in 2009. The kabocha is traded out with the seasons for things like fresh apricots, kohlrabi, or patty pan squash -- slices of apple or persimmon are also good when you don't feel like waiting for the squash to roast. Unless you wind up with especially burly kale, there's no need to massage the dressing into this salad, unlike others with raw kale. —Genius Recipes

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: Our Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes. —The Editors

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Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup cubed kabocha, butternut, or other winter squash
  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 bunch kale (preferably lacinato or dinosaur kale), ribs removed and finely sliced, about 2 1/2 cups
  • 1/4 cup almonds, cut roughly in half
  • 1/4 cup crumbled or finely chopped Cabot clothbound cheddar (or any good, aged cheddar -- if you can't find aged cheddar, use Parmesan)
  • Fresh lemon juice
  • Pecorino or other hard cheese, for shaving (optional)
Directions
  1. Heat oven to 425° F. Toss squash cubes in just enough olive oil to coat, and season with salt and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet (lined with parchment for easier cleanup), leaving space between the cubes. Roast in the oven until tender and caramelized, about 40 minutes, tossing with a spatula every 10-15 minutes. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet in the same oven until they start to smell nutty, tossing once, about 10 minutes. Let cool.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, toss the kale with the almonds, cheddar and squash. Season to taste with lemon juice and olive oil (approximately 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 2 tablespoons olive oil). Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3. Divide salad between two plates or shallow bowls. Garnish with shaved pecorino cheese, if desired, and serve.
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Recipe by: Genius Recipes

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92 Reviews

Write a Review
Jc November 25, 2022
I have made this several times and found it delicious but … made it yesterday for Thanksgiving and for some reason the kale (laccinato) was quite bitter - very “green” tasting. Does anyone know why that might have happened or how to correct it? I’m think of just cooking (roasting) the leftover salad a bit.
NancyJ November 25, 2022
That sounds fantastic! Please post with how it turns out.
Jc November 26, 2022
Cooking the salad toned the bitterness down a bit, but this particular bunch of kale was a definite disappointment. I wish I knew why.
Betsy November 24, 2021
If I were to use persimmons, can I cut & toss them a day ahead or cut when serving?
Sally November 25, 2020
which would be a better match in this recipe in place of almonds....pine nuts or walnuts?
SmallLion November 25, 2020
Walnuts... pine nuts would be dwarfed by the butternut and cheese.
Sally November 25, 2020
Thanks for the reply and input! Walnuts it is!
Donna November 24, 2020
A Thanksgiving recipe that serves 2? Seriously? Even in Covid times that's just silly.
Liz S. September 11, 2019
I love this salad and make it often in the cool Fall months. I often make it with Manchego or a Sharp Cheddar in a pinch. It's delicious!
Carol V. January 14, 2019
I regularly make this on Sunday night for lunches during the week. I never eat it the day I make it; somehow it tastes better the next day. Great with acorn squash.
SmallLion December 26, 2018
This is one of those perfect dishes that becomes a go to. Don't have butternut? Try persimmon, pear, apple, kabocha, cubed watermelon! Don't have cheddar? try manchego, chunks of parm, piave vecchio, goat cheese, haloumi. Don't have almonds? Try pecan, walnut, pine nuts, heck even cornnuts.
Getting tired of lemon juice + 2 parts oil for dressing? add 1 tbs tahini and garlic; mayo and smashed anchovy; or miso and grated carrot... This recipes is amazingly forgiving and flexible. I love that it skips the whole "massage the kale" step.
Sharon H. December 17, 2017
Hello from Vancouver BC Canada. When you grow your own kale and it freezes as it does here and many other places on the planet, there is no need to massage the leaves.fBeing kissed by frost tenderizes the leaves and makes them sweeter - sugar is nature's antifreeze basically.
Debra November 21, 2017
How far in advance can I make this salad. Trying not to leave everything for the big day (Thanksgiving) when the house will be filled with overnight guests
Kristen M. November 23, 2017
Debra, I'm so sorry for the delay—I hope you were able to make this at least a day in advance to get it out of your way. Happy Thanksgiving!
Susan May 12, 2017
Massaging the kale? Can someone please teach me how exactly one should do this?
Gal August 2, 2017
Massaging is a process of physically breaking down the kale to make it easier to digest. Basically, because kale is such a tough green and its texture isn't great, it needs to be broken down a bit.
Massaging it raw for 2-3 minutes with your hands prior to eating is like pre-digesting the kale. After massaging, the kale will become more vibrant green and softer in texture. It will also decrease in volume.
Brandy S. November 29, 2021
Before adding the other ingredients, massage the kale vigorously with the dressing (using gloves) until tender. This can take awhile up to 10 minutes. I'm eager to try the freezing method that Sharon H. mentioned above though.
judy March 15, 2017
I have been eating kale salads regularly, too. But rather than massaging deeply--I don;t want dressing all over my hands--wasteful. I just toss the kale in the dressing first and let it soak with seeds like pumpkin and sunflower. These get softened as well. My teeth are not as strong as in the past. Then the dressing is well-soaked, kale and seeds are softened and then I toss in whatever else I am going to put in. Works great. I was wondering when it says Northern Spy, I was looking for apples in the ingredient list. I add apples and other fruits in my salads often. Nice dressing.
Bluerroses December 29, 2016
I tried microwaving before peeling, a new technique for wrangling winter squash. http://tinyurl.com/wsquash It worked out fine, and I didn't feel I was taking my life in my hands as I do when I prep raw squash. My kale was a bit tough, so I microwave-steamed wet, cut-up leaves for 90 seconds. I used blue cheese and added golden raisins along with the almonds. The result was delicious, something I'll make again and again. Thanks everyone for your helpful comments!
Sue November 11, 2016
Sounds delicious. LOVE the salad bowl! Any idea where I can get one?
Kristen M. November 11, 2016
I sure do! https://food52.com/shop/products/1798-american-black-walnut-bowl
cookinalong November 9, 2016
Love this and have made it loads of times since it first appeared. It's wonderful as is, but just as good with bleu cheese or gorgonzola, and some chopped apples go down well, too.
Whats4Dinner November 5, 2016
I've been making kale salads more frequently lately as my son needs to keep light weight for rowing. I ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS vigorously "massage" the finely chopped, de-ribbed kale in the dressing before adding the other ingredients. This "deep massage" makes the kale much more delightful and accepting of the dressing flavoring. Tonight, those other ingredients happen to be cubed baked sweet potato, chopped green apple, dried cranberries, radishes, roasted pumpkin seeds, all topped with grilled salmon. Oh, in a dijon vinaigrette. We are dairy-free in this house
judy November 5, 2016
I make kale salads almost daily, as my husband is on Warfarin. By eating kale 4-6 days a week he keeps his pro-time down and can use about half the usual dosing of warfarin.. I have trouble with how coarse this vegetable is and difficulty chewing it. When I use it raw, I make it about 20 minutes before eating, and then let the ingredients marinate. No rubbing required. This version should be delicious. I have a squash waiting for a roasting and a special use. I thin it will go great with our grass fed steak and baked potato. The new idea here for me is that it would keep for a few days. I usually only make enough for that meal Sounds like a couple of good lunches for the office this upcoming week! Thank you.
Hana November 18, 2016
That's not quite how the interaction with kale (Vitamin K) and warfarin works. I urge your husband to talk to his physician or pharmacist about dietary interactions.
Andrea M. September 28, 2016
How is this so good? (It is).
Ttrockwood March 27, 2016
I was so sad to hear that Northern Spy closed a few months ago- i loved ordering this salad there. I made this recipe last week and doubled it to bring for lunches. I massaged the kale to help it soften and used cubed smoked tofu instead of the cheese- really delicious!! And what i love about kale salads like this is how they are just as tasty even two days later!
Next time i might add in some chickpeas or lentils to make it more of a meal salad
NotTooSweet October 25, 2015
I've had this on my list of recipes to try for SO long but it just never seemed like it could really be as delicious as the comments and the number of people who have it as a favorite would indicate. Happy to say I was totally wrong. I had made roasted butternut squash the night before and had some leftover so it was a good time to give this salad a try. I reheated the squash so we would have the contrast of warm with cold and the whole salad was just wonderful. If you are hesitating as I did, please don't! I do not plan to second guess the Food52 community again.
Petite F. May 13, 2015
My friend made this for me after much talk. IT WAS Fabulous!! great texture and flavor. I also added red cabbage and spinach with beans for protein. AWesome!
Thx for sharing...