Massaged Rainbow Chard + Pink Lady Apple Salad

By Shelly Rose  , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 6, 2017

This recipe is an adaption from one of my beloved nutrition and therapeutic cooking instructors at Bastyr University, Jennifer Adler. It's tweaked for a fall flare and was created for a lifestyle design conference workshop for lady entrepreneurs (RebelleCon) who want to make nutrition delicious and sustainable in their busy lives.

  • Prep: 20 mins
  • Yields: 8

Ingredients

2 large bunches of rainbow chard, destemmed and cut into ribbons

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

2/3 cups pine nuts or pumpkin seeds, dry toasted

2/3 cups fruit juice-sweetened dried cranberries

1/3 cup shaved, or finely diced red onion

2 small, pink lady apples, cored and diced 1/2" cubes

1/3 cup olive oil

2 lemons, juiced

Directions

1If nuts aren't toasted, dry toast them in an un-greased skillet over low-medium for a few minutes until they give off a nutty aroma and turn golden. Set aside to cool in a separate dish.

2In a colander, combine the chard and salt. Massage gently with your hands for about 1-2 minutes, until it wilts a bit and darkens in color. Scoop part of it up in your hands and wring it out like a sponge to release all of the water (it'll be green, foamy, and more than you expect). Do this for the remaining chard and place the freshly pressed greens into a serving bowl.

3Toss in pine nuts, cranberries, red onion, and apples.

4Add in your dressing, olive oil and lemon juice. Adjust to taste depending on how much acidity you like. Toss it all together and serve up.

Feel free to use this recipe as your own template, switching out chard for kale; cranberries for raisins, cherries, or currants; pine nuts for sunflower seeds or walnuts. Add gorgonzola to really bring it up if enjoy dairy. This dish holds up really well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in a sealed container. I like to divvy out into 4 containers or so and have it ready to grab-in-go as part of any meal of the day. Dark leafy, powerhouse greens are never far away and should be a staple all year round, but especially in the fall and winter months.

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