Thursday, March 8, 2012

raw Ranch Battered Kale Chips

In the above photo, beautiful green Lacinato Kale and Red Russian Kale, which I harvested myself at Green Gate Farms. Beside the kale lies a bowl of my rich and creamy nut-based Ranch sauce.
Here is the kale, heavily battered, in a luscious cashew & pine nut based ranch
In the dehydrator they go! Lined on wax paper at 109 degrees


Ranch Battered Kale Chips

1 head Lacinato Kale
1 head Red Russian Kale
2 c cashews, soaked 3 hours
1/4 c pine nuts
white miso (to taste, for salt)
2-3 cloves garlic
2-3 scallions
dill & parsley, fresh or dry
2 t ground mustard
2 lemons juiced

This is one of the recipes that I developed for our final project at plant-based Culinary School. I'm not sure if  you can duplicate the silky smooth texture of this batter without a Vita-mix blender. But you could try!

Its important to soak the cashews before blending. Soaking germinates (sprouts) the nuts and also, fattens and softens them. After a couple of hours they take on a purplish hue. Sprouted nuts, seeds and grains are one of the healthiest foods on the planet. 

Blend the 2c cashews with 1 1/2 c water. adjust by adding more water if necessary. Add the rest of the ingredients and taste your batter. If it needs more salt add a touch more miso.. if you think it needs a brighter flavor add more lemon.. if the herbs and spices aren't coming through enough then adjust accordingly. 

Its important to note that flavors concentrate in a dehydrator. So you may want to slightly under-season the batter.

These need to dehydrate at 109deg for at least 24hours. It may sound like a long time, but its totally worth it and you'll impress your friends. Have fun!

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