This kale salad is one I love to make in the winter — a hearty, colorful kale salad to satisfy all your sweet, salty and crunchy cravings. It’s hard not to love the contrast of flavors going on, with salty shreds of aged sheep cheese, sharp lemon juice and sweet-smoky fruit.

A wooden bowl filled with a colorful chopped kale salad featuring leafy greens, red radicchio, shaved cheese, and sliced dates on a light countertop.

Medjool dates are dried dates, but far from hard and dry. They have a rich, candy-like quality and are really kind of luscious, all plump and tender inside.

And you can find them in almost every well-stocked market in the produce section year-round. I dream of eating a fresh-off-the-tree date, preferably right now while taking in the sight of an azure Mediterranean sky through a spray of palm fronds.

A wooden bowl filled with a colorful chopped kale salad featuring leafy greens, red radicchio, shaved cheese, and sliced dates on a light countertop.
Chopped Kale Salad with Dates and Goat Cheese
5 from 1 rating

Chopped Kale Salad with Hot Dates

Karen Tedesco
A simple salad for fall and winter, with chopped kale. radicchio, warm Medjool dates and salty, tangy cheese.
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Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients
 

  • 6 Medjool dates
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 bunch lacinato, Tuscan kale, stemmed
  • Leaves from 2 romaine lettuce hearts
  • 1 small head radicchio
  • Juice from 1 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar, or red wine vinegar
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Flaked sea salt or kosher salt
  • ⅓ cup freshly grated aged sheep’s milk cheese, such as Manchego or Pecorino Romano

Instructions
 

  1. Heat oven to 375 (190 C) degrees.
  2. Halve the dates, remove the pits and slice each half into 4 slivers. Toss the dates with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil and the smoked paprika on a small baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes.
  3. While the dates are in the oven, rub the garlic on the inside of a big salad or serving bowl.
  4. Stack the kale leaves 2 or 3 at a time and slice crosswise into thin ribbons; repeat with romaine leaves. Cut the radicchio head in half and cut out the white core and slice the leaves into thin ribbons.
  5. Put all the leaves in the serving bowl. Add the remaining olive oil, lemon juice, black pepper to taste and a good pinch of salt. Toss with your hands to coat the leaves, add the cheese and toss again. Taste and season with more salt if needed.
  6. Distribute the warm dates over the salad and serve.

Notes

  • This salad is great to make ahead, as the dressing marinates and softens the kale leaves the longer it sits. Top with the warm dates just before serving.

Nutrition per serving

Serving: 1servings Calories: 228kcal Carbohydrates: 28g Protein: 4g Fat: 13g Sodium: 102mg Fiber: 3g Sugar: 24g

Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.

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