Out of all the recipes I’ve written in the past few months, this is easily my favourite. The framework came from a “kale caesar” we prepared under the guidance of genius chef, Mandel Hitzer of Deer+Almond at a Les Marmitons dinner. The dressing used canola oil and Orange Pellegrino.
Here’s my spin on it, using ginger ale of all things. I happened to use sugar-free, though for the small amount used, nutritionally it doesn’t really matter. A good ginger beer would be excellent as well. The initial taste of the dressing is sweet, followed by garlicky goodness and if you like textural variety you’re going to be absolutely thrilled with this salad!
To have this on the table in forty minutes or less, you’ll have to do some multitasking. Cook the pancetta while bringing the eggs to a boil. Tear your kale and whisk the dressing together while the eggs cool.
Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
4 large eggs 4 ounces pancetta – diced to ¼” 4 tablespoons canola oil 2 tablespoons ginger ale 1 clove garlic – very finely chopped or crushed ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt ⅛ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper 1 bunch kale – torn with stalks discarded 1 ounce parmesan cheese – shavedPreparation:
Place the eggs in a single layer in a small pot and cover with cool water. Place the pot on high heat and bring to a boil. Turn off the burner and let the eggs rest in the water for fifteen minutes. Drain the warm water and replace with cold.
While the eggs are cooking, place a small frying pan on medium heat and add the pancetta, stirring occasionally for approximately seven minutes or until browned.
In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, ginger ale, garlic, salt and pepper.
Pour the dressing over the kale and toss to coat the leaves evenly. Plate the kale.
Peel the eggs and grate one over each salad using a coarse grater.
Garnish the salad with the pancetta and parmesan.
Serve immediately.