All Kale the Goddess
Dec 2012 by RM Allen, author of The NH Goddess Chronicles series
Kale. What is that weird cousin of lettuce, all gnarly and rubbery and atomic green? Tracey Miller knows. Last summer, Tracey gave me a big bundle of fresh kale and said it was super good for me. I am not much of a cook, and this was the first time I ever held raw kale in my hands. How should I prepare it? I looked up a recipe for kale chips online, and made them. I was addicted. They tasted and crunched like a bag of thin chips. But they are really good for you. Imagine that, guilt-free chips!
I ate the whole bundle in one sitting. It was like eating the whole bag of chips, which I have always wanted to do.
Last month, Tracey invited me to sit in on a cooking class she and Kathy Gallant were giving at Kathy’s all local food restaurant, the Blue Moon Evolution in Exeter. (Last time I was in a cooking class was in Home-Economics at Essex Elementary in the 1970’s.) Posters around town had notified me that Tracey was running a cooking series for moms this fall as part of her FoodAndHealthForum.com series. I didn’t know quite what that night’s class was about or how skilled the attendees were supposed to be. So I wore my apron there, to at least look like I had a clue coming through the door. It turns out I didn’t have to actually cook, just watch. And eat. Yay! One of the dishes was a kale salad. All dressed up and delicious. All hail the goddess Kale!!
The next cooking class in Tracey’s Food and Health Forum is about eating healthy for the holidays and is on December 3rd, 2012 at the Blue Moon Evolution. You can still sign up. This year she ran all cooking classes in the forum. Last year she and Kathy brought in national speakers for the forum, who spoke on topics like food GMO, monoculture farming, and the local food movement. The speakers present, and afterwards you all eat a locavore meal together and chat. I attended the one by Ben Hewitt, author of The Town That Food Saved, and I was particularly struck by his words about raw milk. One of the best parts about attending any of the events in the forum is the people that you meet there. Tracey and Kathy are providing a forum for like minded people to get together and exchange ideas around holistic wellness; personal, societal, and global. Rock on sister goddesses, I salute you!
Recently I have been purchasing kale at Market Basket from the same company I buy my bags of baby spinach from. Actually, Olivia’s brand comes in a large plastic tub, and she now offers baby kale. Baby kale is a lot easier for the average person to understand. It is small and flexible, and attractive – kind of cute actually. You can eat it raw in salads, roast it into chips, or throw a handful in your soup. My favorite preparation so far is something easy that I bring for lunch at work sometimes: steamed chopped asparagus (cold) on a bed of baby kale, drizzled with Annie’ brand Goddess dressing (with tahini) and crisp organic smoked bacon crumbled over the top. The kale is hardier that lettuce or spinach, and can stand up to being dressed for hours without wilting too much.
Tracey and Kathy will bring next to their Food and Health Forum a class on eating healthy for the holidays on Dec. 3rd. Check this website here to see, or to get health tips, or watch a video on how to make kale chips. All kale the goddess!
RM-Allen.com 