These delicious kale recipes include comforting pastas, cozy soups, hearty salads, and more! This vibrant leafy green has never tasted better.
Sautéed kale
On its own, this lemon-sautéed kale is a nutritious accompaniment, but it’s also a great addition to larger recipes. Mix with pasta, add it to a frittata or stack it on pizza. The options are endless!
Kale
Pesto This vibrant pesto is my cool-weather alternative to classic basil pesto. Mix it with pasta, put it in soups, spread it on a sandwich, splash on the pizza … You really can’t go wrong.
We’ve all
eaten kale salads that are hard and dry, but don’t worry, you won’t find any like that here. Instead, these hearty salads are packed with exciting flavors and textures. Tip: they all hold up well if you make them ahead of time (you can even add the dressing!), so they’re great recipes to pack for lunch.
Kale
salad
with carrot and ginger dressing If you make just one recipe from this list, this kale salad should be. It’s so energizing, refreshing, and satisfying that it will win over even the biggest kale skeptics. Toasted chickpeas and roasted seeds add crunchiness, a rainbow of root vegetables makes it vibrant and colorful, and an electric carrot and ginger dressing ties it all together.
Wheat berry salad
Roasted shallots, sage and thyme add complexity and depth to this salad. It’s an impressive side dish for dinner, but thanks to the wheat berries and roasted squash, it’s also filling enough to eat for lunch.
Soba Noodle Picnic Salad with Tahini Miso, Page 117 of Love & Lemons Every Day These colorful picnic salads are perfect for packing and taking away on the go! I almost always massage kale when I use it in salads, but not here. Instead, I cut it very finely to help it soften. This method saves time, and finely chopped kale integrates nicely with noodles when you eat.
Kale
Quinoa salad This green salad means it’s a kale blast! Abundant vegetables form the base, while a creamy kale nugget acts as a dressing. I round it off with cooked quinoa, crispy chickpeas, roasted vegetables and tablespoons of sauerkraut for pop.
Roasted delicata kale kale The best lunch of autumn! I love how the sweet, creamy pumpkin plays with walnut farro and Tuscan kale in this recipe.
Bowls
Steamed, blanched, sautéed and massaged kale are fantastic additions to grain bowls. They add a lot of nutrients and a magnificent green shock.
Best Buddha Bowl
Make this Buddha bowl recipe as written, or use it as a template to invent your own bowl! Change cooked lentils for chickpeas, or substitute sweet potatoes for pumpkin. Try using quinoa instead of brown rice, or drizzle a different sauce. Lime and coriander dressing, green goddess dressing or any of my variations of tahini sauce would be great.
<img
src=”https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_25462.jpg” alt=”Best Buddha Bowl” />
Rainbow bowls with almond and ginger dressing Tender baby kale adds extra green energy to this bowl of noodles full of vegetables.
Cauliflower Rice Kimchi Bowls This grain-free grain bowl is one of my favorite recipes to make when I need a healthy reset. With a cauliflower rice base, it’s super light and nutritious. Still, sriracha baked tofu, kimchi, and a creamy coconut sauce pack it with a bold flavor.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/IMG_10161-2-1.jpg" alt="
Cauliflower Rice Kimchi Bowls
” />
Peanut Noodle Kale Bowls, page 147 of The Love & Lemons Cookbook This recipe = peanut sauce + noodles + lots of vegetables. What is not loving?!
Pesto kale
Pistachio bowls with mushrooms Here is another recipe in which I use kale in two ways. I add massaged kale to the base of the bowls and give a creamy kale pesto on top. Do you see how green pesto is? I make it with pistachios instead of pine nuts for an extra vivid color!
I
love using leafy greens in all kinds of pasta dishes, and kale is no exception. Add lovely color and texture to the following recipes:
Spaghetti Aglio e Olio I can never resist adding green vegetables to a classic pasta dish! Sautéed kale illuminates this lemon version of aglio and olio spaghetti.
Kale & Sweet Potato Lasagna Roll-Ups, page 197 of Love & Lemons Every Day Seriously, WHAT could be more fun than these cozy lasagna roll-ups? Made with a creamy tofu and cashew ricotta, they are completely vegan and dairy-free.
Sun-dried tomato paste with kale This elegant winter pasta is very easy to make. Sauté the vegetables, boil the pasta and mix everything together with the grated pecorino cheese on top.
Best vegetarian lasagna My favorite healthy homemade food! Packed with roasted vegetables and fresh kale, this lasagna is my ideal dinner on a cold winter night.
Sweet potato noodles with garlic and kale Is it pasta? Is it delicious? Yes! This recipe would work equally well with spiral pumpkin instead of sweet potato.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/IMG_12032.jpg" alt="Vegetarian lasagna – delicious kale
recipes” /> Spaghetti pumpkin
with chickpeas and kale I shared this spaghetti pumpkin “paste” over 6 years ago, and to this day, it’s one of the most popular recipes at Love & Lemons. Tasty sun-dried tomatoes, chickpeas and kale transform roasted pumpkin into a tasty main course.
SoupsI have these cozy kale recipes repeated during fall, winter, and early spring! I love the way hearty vegetables cling to their texture in soups and stews, becoming tender, but not at all mushy.
Wild rice soup Pssst! This comforting wild rice soup looks rich, but it’s secretly vegan and dairy-free! Mixed white beans, cashews and miso paste make up its creamy and tasty base.
Coconut Soup with Sweet Potatoes and Kale, page 85 of Love & Lemons Every Day This vegan riff in Thai tom kha is one of my favorite recipes from my second cookbook. Lime zest, lemongrass, ginger and cilantro add a bright and aromatic flavor to the rich coconut broth.
Lemon Miso Spring Green Soup, page 89 of Love & Lemons Every Day Making a large pot of this soup is my favorite way to welcome spring! Lacinato kale is mixed with spring vegetables such as peas, asparagus, peas with peels and spring onions. A refreshing mint pesto carries it with you.
Ribollita
Not sure how to use that stale bread on your counter? Make ribollita! The bread acts as a thickener in this pantry-friendly Tuscan kale and white bean soup.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/IMG_10293-cropped.jpg" alt=
“kale and fennel vegetable soup” />
Kale and fennel vegetable soup, page 149 of The Love & Lemons Cookbook Simmered this soup with a parmesan crust to infuse it with depth of umami flavor. But if you’re vegan, feel free to leave it out. Thanks to white wine, fennel, lemon juice and fresh thyme, this healing soup is very tasty without it.
More kale recipes
from the main course
Don’t worry, if you don’t crave pasta, a bowl of grains or a soup, we still have
kale recipes for you!
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/IMG_2015_10_15_06304-cropped2.jpg" alt=
“Baked feta cheese – easy kale recipes” />
Baked feta cheese The creamy, spicy slabs of feta cheese melt into a tomato sauce filled with kale and chickpeas. Clean it with fresh pita or good crusty bread.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/final-IMG_2014_12_21_02275.jpg" alt="Acorn-fed pumpkin stuffed with
quinoa apple sage” /> Acorn-fed pumpkin
stuffed with
quinoa, apple and sage, page 191 of Love & Lemons Every Day This stuffed pumpkin worthy of Thanksgiving is a cornucopia of autumn generosity! The quinoa filling features popped pomegranate seeds, crispy apples, chopped kale and a dressing of apple cider and sage.
Stuffed sweet potatoes
Fill a swollen sweet potato baked with a tasty filling, and it transforms into a nutritious dinner in an instant! You’ll find roasted kale leaves in my Spiced Curry filling.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG_2016_08_28_08250-final-crop2.jpg" alt=
“Kale quesadillas” />
Vegetarian quinoa and kale quesadillas Quesadillas have never looked so green! Complete the look with tomatillo green sauce and guac for dipping.
Kale recipes for
breakfastkale recipes aren’t just for lunch and dinner! Start your day with these healthy, energizing breakfast ideas.
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/IMG_0071.jpg" alt="Mini Frittata Muffins
” /> Mini Frittata Muffins
These takeaway breakfast snacks are packed with protein, vegetables, and healthy fats. And better yet, they taste delicious!
<img src="https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/IMG_11889-cropped-1.jpg" alt="Quinoa bowls with kale and eggs
” /> Quinoa Miso Bowls with Kale
and Eggs, page 45 of Love & Lemons Every Day Calling all vegetable lovers! This green breakfast bowl is full of scallions, dill, radishes, avocado, and of course, kale.
<img
src=”https://cdn.loveandlemons.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/IMG_0143-2-cropped.jpg” alt=”Kale smoothie” />
Kale SmoothieMatcha green tea adds an invigorating stimulant to this ginger, peach and kale smoothie. Even Jack, a devoted berry smoothie lover, fell in love with this green blend
!
Baking Eggs, Sage and Sweet Potatoes, page 215 of The Love & Lemons Cookbook These delicious breakfast pans are perfect for a weekend brunch. A pinch of smoked paprika gives them a rich, smoky flavor depth.
