Kale Chips

Kale Chips

For some time now, I’ve been hearing all this buzz about kale chips. How healthy they are. How yummy they are.  How easy they are to make. Until recently, I’ll admit that I didn’t even know what kale looked like, let alone how it tasted. Today, I finally decided to give making them a try. Nothing ever works out perfectly the first time, and I think that I should have made sure the leaves were all a bit drier. I also think that perhaps the girl and I oversalted them (we did this as a project together).

Of course, I had no idea what to do with this, so I turned to google. Every site said pretty much the same thing, so here’s what I did.

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch of kale
  • olive oil
  • coarse salt (I used kosher, but any coarse sea salt will do)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Tear the kale leaves into bite sized pieces, removing the thicker stems as you go.
  3. Thoroughly wash and dry the leaves. I dried them by using a salad spinner and then spread them out on a towel for an hour or two.  I then patted any wetness away with a paper towel. The leaves must be dry to make sure they crisp up well.
  4. Put the leaves in a large bowl and add olive oil (about 2 tablespoons and lightly coat the leaves completely (again, for proper crushing when cooking).
  5. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  6. Spread the leaves out so they are not overlapping each other, in one layer on the lined cookie sheet.
  7. Sprinkle lightly with salt or other seasoning of your choosing.
  8. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until leaves become crunchy. The first batch may take a minute longer than the rest. (You will probably need to bake 2-3 batches to use up the bunch) because you’re starting with a cold cookie sheet.)

Kale chips are best enjoyed fresh from the oven. If you don’t eat them all, store the remaining chips in a paper lunch bag to keep them crisp. 

I loved them. The girl, not so much. She tried them about three times before giving up. I think that means she really wants to like them, and probably will, eventually. 

Looking to limit your sodium intake? I bet these would be amazing if you substituted a little garlic powder for the salt. If you try it, let me know.

**Update**
In subsequent go-rounds, I added a teensy bit of garlic powder to the already salted kale. Yep. Amazeballs.