Kale Crisps

 

Eat your greens! Well, I do love greens and I do eat a lot of them in salad, in horta and in pie. But every now and then I just don't feel like a great pile of leaves mounded on my plate, and that's when I fool about with kale.

Kale is such a sturdy vegetable that it can be, effectively, chipped. That is, it can be baked with oil and salt, and a bit of chilli perhaps, and turned into a delightfully flaky nutty flavoured thing. For this chips-not-chocolate girl, kale crisps are perfect for an afternoon snack, with an evening beer, or anytime really.

Sure, I can buy wildly expensive packages of kale chips, but why would I when they are a doddle to make and cheap as, well, chips?

Kale Crisps - 1 bunch black kale aka cavolo nero or Tuscan kale - olive oil - chilli flakes (optional. I often do two batches, one with chilli for me, and one without for the kids.) - salt Preheat the oven to 180°. Position an oven shelf near the top of the oven. Wash and dry the kale. Cut out the thick central stems, and chop the leaves into bite size pieces. Drizzle olive oil into a large bowl. Sprinkle in chilli flakes to taste (start with about ¼ tsp) and a large pinch of salt. Throw the leaves into the bowl and toss with your hands until they have a slight sheen from the olive oil, and the salt and chilli flakes are evenly distributed. Line a baking tray with silicon or baking paper, and place the leaves in a single layer on the tray. Slide the tray into the top shelf of the oven. Check after 12 minutes; if they are not yet crisp and slightly golden, give them another couple of minutes in the oven. Remove from the oven. Serve warm or cold. Kale crisps do not stay crisp terribly long, so either eat them immediately or, as soon as they are cool, place them into an airtight container lined with paper towel or similar to absorb any residual moisture. In lieu of chilli flakes you could use some sort of spice mix. Experiment! (Local: kale, olive oil. Not so local: chilli flakes, salt.)