If you’re looking for a way to add more leafy greens to your diet, baby kale is a great option. It’s mild in flavor and very versatile, which means it can be used in a variety of recipes. Here are 10 of my favorite baby kale recipes with you. These recipes are all easy to follow and require minimal ingredients whether you’re wanting to use raw kale or cooked kale. So, if you’re looking for some new and delicious ways to enjoy tender baby kale, look no further!
What is Baby Kale?
Baby kale is simply any young leaves of any variety of kale plant. These are generally the inner leaves and can either be harvested from mature kale plants or even young kale plants. Are you interested in growing your own kale? Check out my full tutorial of How to Grow Kale at Home; it’s incredibly easy and is a great green to have growing in the garden or in containers.
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These baby kale leaves can come from tuscan kale (dinosaur or lacinato kale), curly kale, or red kale. Choose the kale variety that you enjoy most for whatever baby kale recipe you choose to make! Baby kale is a great superfood to add to your diet for a number of health benefits. It’s packed with tons of vitamins and antioxidants that can aid in digestion and help boost the immune system.
Plus, it provides high levels of iron, calcium, vitamin c, vitamin a, and fiber. Baby kale is perfect for any healthy meal plan since it’s easy to incorporate into a variety of dishes. Whether it’s part of a salad, soup or smoothie – baby kale can turn healthful dishes from ordinary to extraordinary! With its unique burst of flavor, nutrition and convenience – why not start adding more baby kale to your diet?
Using Baby Kale in Recipes
Baby kale is easy to add to many recipes that call for baby spinach or any other leafy green. My favorite way to eat kale is a quick saute with a garlic clove, drizzle of olive oil, and balsamic vinegar and you can find my full recipe for Quick and Easy Sauteed Kale here. But what if you need a heartier baby kale recipe that can be a quick breakfast, like a smoothie, or even a hearty salad for an easy dinner?
We have you covered! Baby kale is very versatile since the stems are still tender and the leaves don’t require thick ribs to be cut away like with regular kale. These are some of the best ways I’ve found to use baby kale in the kitchen, so I hope you’ll give a few of them a try if for no other reasons than to increase your health a little bit and to get in your daily value of quite a few vitamins and minerals. Now, onto the recipes!
Baby Kale Smoothie Recipes
Want to get your greens in first thing in the morning with just minutes of prep time? Try these easy kale smoothies for breakfast or snack in a flash!
- Blueberry Kale Smoothie (A Cedar Spoon): Blueberry Kale Smoothie is a nutritious way to start your day or mid-day snack. Blueberries, banana, Greek yogurt, milk and kale are blended together into a sweet smoothie. This is a kid and adult favorite in my house full of antioxidants and vitamins a and c!
- Delicious Kale Smoothie (Happy Kitchen Rocks): The only kale smoothie recipe you’ll ever need: not only good for you, but also delicious! This detoxifying protein-packed green smoothie tastes amazingly refreshing and only takes 5 minutes to make!
Baby Kale Salad Recipes
Salad is a great way to use baby kale, and these kale salad recipes don’t disappoint. So, give your kale leaves a quick massage as you whip up these delicious salad combinations:
- Kale and Apple Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing (Seasonal Cravings): Kale and Apple Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing is loaded with pistachios and pomegranate arils. It is fresh, seasonal, and easy recipe with the best dressing. This recipe is gluten free, dairy-free, vegan, paleo, whole30 compliant.
- The Best Baby Kale Salad with Roasted Chick peas (Running to the Kitchen): Here’s a good recipe for a quick and easy baby kale salad! Tossed in a simple tahini dressing and topped with roasted BBQ chickpeas and apple slices, it’s a complete plant-based meal with little effort.
- Epic Winter Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Baby Kale, and Avocado (Kitchen Treaty): With its gorgeous colors – emerald, ruby, and gold – and its juxtaposition of savory and sweet, this baby kale salad recipe is addicting in the best possible way.Because, well, it’s salad! It can be made vegan, dairy-free, vegetarian, or have meat added – whichever way, it’s no wimpy side salad. It is a full meal.
- Creamy Kale Coleslaw with Apple (Neils Healthy Meals): This creamy kale coleslaw with apple is a delicious and healthy alternative to traditional coleslaw. It’s the perfect accompaniment at any time of the year!
- Kale Caesar Salad- SweetGreen copycat recipe (Confessions of a Fit Foodie): This yummy Kale Caesar Salad is the perfect SweetGreen copycat recipe that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own kitchen. A fresh mix of both kale and romaine lettuce,juicy chicken, crunchy Parmesan cheese crisps, and tangy Caesar dressing will have your mouthwatering!
Baby Kale Main Dish, Soups, and Sides
- Kale and Havarti Quiche (The Kitchen Garten): Hands down, this is one of the most popular recipes on my blog is this easy to make cheesy kale quiche. My family always thinks this quiche is a good idea for dinner. This recipe used sautéed kale and creamy havarti cheese for a dish that is a perfect choice for either breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
- Vegan Zuppa Toscana (Happy Kitchen Rocks): This easy vegan Zuppa Toscana soup recipe is the perfect weeknight dinner, make ahead lunch, or company treat. It’s a warm, savory, vegetable soup recipe with kale, white beans, andpotatoes with Tuscan herbs for added flavor. And if you’re not vegan, you can always add in Italian sausage.
- Kale and Sweet Potato Power Bowl (Kelly Stillwell): Our vegan Kale and Sweet Potato Power Bowl is the perfect easy recipe for a healthy dinner or lunch! Super easy to make, this will be a new favorite!
- Kale Falafel (Little Ferraro Kitchen): Our vegan Kale and Sweet Potato Power Bowl is the perfect easy recipe for a healthy dinner or lunch! Super easy to make, this will be a new favorite!
- Sautéed Kale and Chickpeas (The Salt and Sweet): This easy Sautéed kale and Chickpeas recipe takes less than 15 minutes to make with only 5 healthy ingredients, and tastes great on its own or as a side dish!
Do you have other favorite kale recipes? Feel free to share them below!
