Fody's Kale Salad with Lentils & Roasted Pepitas

Kale is a powerhouse of nutrition, particularly vitamins A, C and K, as well as magnesium and fiber.

We like it cooked as well as raw, and it is the perfect base for your favorite Low FODMAP salad dressing. Monash University lists Lacinato kale on their smartphone app as a Low FODMAP food with only trace amounts of FODMAPs; our digestion has done very well with all types of kale, of which there are many. You could certainly use one kind, but consider using a couple; in the image above, we used Lacinato as well as purple curly kale. This Low FODMAP kale salad recipe brings raw kale together with roasted red peppers and broccoli as well as roasted pepitas - both roasted with garlic-infused olive oil. Then we add canned, rinsed and drained lentils for protein making this a very hardy, colorful and texture-rich salad, and one of our favorite Low FODMAP salad recipes. I also call for a nice amount of parsley. The sweet, fresh herb balances the slightly bitter kale quite nicely. You could add feta for an added (non-vegan) dimension or leave this dairy-free if you like. As for dressing, it’s your choice!

Position oven racks in upper third and lower third of oven. Preheat oven to 400F/200C. Place sliced red peppers and broccoli on a rimmed baking sheet and place the pumpkin seeds on a separate pan. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the Fody Garlic-Infused Olive Oil over the vegetables and the 1/2 teaspoon of oil over the pumpkin seeds. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the Fody Lemon Herb Seasoning over the vegetables and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of spice over the seeds. Use your hands or tongs to toss the vegetables right on the pan with the oil ands spices; do the same for the pumpkin seeds.

Place vegetables on upper rack and pumpkin seeds on lower rack. Roast for 5 minutes. Remove seeds, which should be lightly browned and roast vegetables for 5 minutes more or just until crisp tender. Remove from oven and cool both veggies and seeds.

Meanwhile, toss the kale, parsley leaves and chopped parsley in a large decorative salad bowl (you will be bringing this pretty salad right to the table or buffet). When roasted vegetables and seeds are cooled to room temperature, toss them into the greens. Either toss the lentils into the salad, or place in the middle as shown. Scatter with feta, if desired. We like this Low FODMAP kale salad served with either a simple vinaigrette, or Fody Low FODMAP Caesar Salad Dressing. You could make and refrigerate the undressed salad up to 6 hours ahead; just make sure to bring back to room temperature before serving; I do prefer it served right away when the roasted vegetables are at their best.

“Bunches” of kale is a very imprecise measurement, hence the way I have listed the vegetable in a few ways. If you buy two large bunches you should have plenty of kale. Wash and dry the kale and remove the hard, center stems. I simply grab the leaves and pull, which effectively strips the soft leaves from the stems (which my dogs love to eat). Once you have the leaves separated from the stems, roll the leaves up and use a chef’s knife to slice crosswise as thinly as possible. You will have a pile of kale strips. Then use your knife to chop those into even smaller pieces. You can also place torn leaves into a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse on and off until finely chopped.