I love when a trip to the grocery store teaches me something new. The other day I ventured in to Whole Foods (or Whole Paycheck as we also like to call it), and came upon a poster with interesting information about something called the ANDI index. Apparently, ANDI stands for “Aggregate Nutrient Density Index”, and ranks the nutrition index of foods on a scale from 1 – 1000, by “evaluating a range of micronutrients including vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidant capacities”.
As you can see, leafy greens rule the roost, and among the ones with a perfect score is kale. And, since most fruits and veggies are at their most potent in their raw state, I figured I needed to come up with a really good way to use raw kale. After a little experimenting, I came up with the following:
*** Since I rarely cook from a recipe, be aware that whatever amounts I do mention are approximate, and might require some tweaking to suit your taste***
Crush a good-size garlic clove. Add 1 part Ponzu (a Japanese citrus vinegar), 3 parts olive oil, a pinch of salt, and about a teaspoon sweet hot mustard. If you don’t have access to Ponzu, you can use a blend of decent white wine vinegar and fresh lemon juice. Add a generous amount of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, a handful of raisins and an equal amount of toasted pine nuts. Shred the kale finely, and toss well with the other ingredients. I like to use a mix of red and green kale, because it looks so beautiful. Make it ahead of time so the dressing has time to soften the kale. I usually make it the day before. If you want to make it a bit meatier, this is a perfect foil for grilled chicken. Other than that, it makes a great potluck item, because the kale resists wilting, and looks fresh for hours. And you can feel great about it, because it is so darn healthy! Enjoy!
UPDATE: Per my favorite grower of these yummy leaves – Michelle of Bethel Springs Farm: this works equally well substituting the raisins and pine nuts with dried cranberries and hazelnuts. Soooo good!
The Creative Flux 
Hi Anna,
I made the salad to take to a dinner today, with a few substitutions for what I had on hand and it was a hit! I think I will be making this a lot more this growing season. Would you mind if I linked to your post from my blog?
Thanks so much for sharing this!
Hi Michelle! So glad you and yours liked it! By all means, feel free link to it! Happy summer!
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