Kale Chips

Before embarking on my new diet, I gained a name for myself among family members for my baked kale. Pineapple loves it as much as potato chips. Everyone who tries it--including staunchly anti-kale aficionados--is surprised at how delicious it is. I also got a lot of requests for my recipe.

Plain kale is a little bitter and not terribly pleasant to eat, but baking it this way helps it shine. It's a little sweet, wonderfully crunchy, perfectly salty, and satisfying.

Additionally, this recipe is designed to be quick so that if you have a craving and the kale then you can start crunching in about 10-15 minutes.

Tools

• Cookie/Baking Sheet
• Silicone Baking Mat/Aluminum Foil/Parchment Paper
• Olive Oil Sprayer: I use a Misto sprayer
• Serving plate

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of Kale: Red, Green, and Tuscan all work well (I prefer Tuscan)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt: Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt is easy to apply via pinching

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
2. Line the cookie sheet with the baking mat (or foil or parchment)
3. Fill your sprayer with olive oil
4. Remove the main stem from kale
1. It's okay to break the remaining leafy portion into smaller chunks
5. Arrange the leaf portion of the kale in a single layer on the baking mat
1. You'll cook several batches, so don't overcrowd the sheet
6. Spray olive oil onto the kale until there is a thin, even coating
1. For my baking sheet I pump (20-30 compressions) the Misto sprayer twice to get a complete coat
7. Sprinkle a pinch or two of salt (to taste) on the oiled kale
8. Bake in the oven until the leafs start to turn tan/brown but are still predominantly green
1. See the notes below for more information
9. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and let cool for 30 seconds to a minute
10. Transfer the kale chips to a plate
11. Repeat steps 4 onward until you've baked all the kale
12. Enjoy!

Notes

I created this recipe for baked kale chips, but it is derived from several other recipes I perused on the web.

Stem

The main stem of the kale is thick, full of water, and won't bake very well. The other minor stems will dry out quickly in the oven so you do not need to remove them.

I used to remove the stem by placing it on a cutting board and carefully tracing the main stem with a sharp knife. But after getting comfortable with how the kale breaks, I now just tear along the stem with my fingers.

Currently I just throw the stem away. I'm sure the stem could be used elsewhere but I haven't explored where yet. As an alternative to spinach in a smoothie maybe?

Baking

You might screw up the fist couple of batches and that's okay; you're still learning what your oven does. Kale is inexpensive, too, so screwing up a few batches is unlikely to break the bank.

Ovens can vary pretty wildly. I've seen some ovens take 5 minute while other take closer to 10. When you are figuring out how quickly kale will cook in your oven, I recommend checking on the kale once every minute until you see the kale change color. The kale can quickly turn from delicious to burnt, so don't get distracted.

The kind of kale can also affect the cooking duration. I find green and red kale bake a little faster than the Tuscan Kale, but only by a minute or two.

My particular oven takes 7-8 minutes, depending on the kale. I use my Fitbit's timer to keep me on track.