Baked Kale Chips

My garden didn’t produce as much kale this year as I would have liked. Usually I have a good supply of frozen kale to last at least part of the winter, so I don’t have to buy it… because I put kale in almost everything I cook!

My farrier was trimming my horses the other day and out of the blue he asked me if I like kale. I guess I surprised him when I said, “Yes!” Turns out they had planted more than they could ever use in their garden and he was planning to plow it up in the next couple of days. He told me to bring a bag and come get some. So I arrived with a big bucket and shoved as much of those huge, giant, leafy greens as I could into that bucket. I hardly made a dent in his kale crop.

I didn’t realize how much I actually had until I got home and started putting it into smaller buckets to soak in salty water and wash. Oh my. I probably have enough to last me a couple of years, at least! I shouldn’t have to buy any kale for a long, long time. I’ll be freezing most of it, dehydrating some of it, and experimenting or cooking with some.

I decided to make kale chips for the first time. I was expecting them to be good, because other kale lovers rave about them, but I wasn’t expecting them to be that good. I baked two baking sheets of them and thought I’d have some left over, but being the pig I am, I ate them all. Good thing they’re a healthy snack!

I didn’t go by any particular recipe. I just winged it, like I often do, other than Googling the best temperature to bake them on and the length of time.

I decided to use avocado oil, but you can use any oil you like (ex. olive oil, grapeseed oil, etc.).

I used Himalayan salt because I like it and it’s healthier.

I tried to think of what else I could use to give it a little bit of flavor, because I’m allergic to a lot of flavorful spices.

I went with a couple of splashes of Coconut Secret (a fermented coconut sap that’s similar to soy sauce), some mustard powder, a couple of pinches of chives, and a bit of my Apple Cider Vinegar Cucamelon Relish [LINK HERE].

Don’t ask me how much of each I put in, because I don’t know. I just put stuff in the bowl, mixed it together, added the washed kale pieces, and stirred it all around. With the second batch, I needed more oil, so I drizzled more on the kale, added sprinkled some more salt, and stirred it well. Spread them out on a baking sheet, baked them at 300F for 20 minutes, and voila – kale chips!

These were the biggest leaves of kale that I’ve ever seen in my life. I think it was only two leaves that filled up the baking sheet! I’ll never use up all of this kale at this rate. 😉

Scroll down to see how I cooked them, but really, do what you like. You could bake them just with salt, or even without if you don’t want it. They would probably be awesome with any of the following: cayenne pepper, Tex Mex spices, or cumin. I would have tried them if I could have them. Parmesan cheese (or substitute) might be really good on them too!

Actually, that might be a bad idea. Parmesan cheese kale chips sounds really good and I could see me eating multiple baking sheets of them at one time. So do that at your own risk. 🙂