Raspberry Kale Salad is a refreshing and vibrant dish that combines the sweetness of raspberries with the earthy flavors of kale. It's a perfect balance of flavors and textures that will leave you feeling satisfied and nourished.
Why You'll Love This Salad
So many reasons to love this salad!
- It's bright and beautiful!
- It's loaded with healthy ingredients that are nourishing and full of antioxidants.
- It's super tasty!
Ingredients Needed
- Kale
- Salt
- Lemon Juice
- Shallots
- Olive Oil
- Raspberry Blush Balsamic Vinegar
- Raspberries
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Goat Cheese
See the recipe card for details!
This is the vinegar I use! There are other variations out there so you can use what you like.
Substitutions
There's quite a few easy swaps here if you don't have the above ingredients!
- Use Red Onions in place of the Shallots.
- Swap the Raspberry Blush Balsamic vinegar for regular Balsamic Vinegar.
- I like to keep this nut free, but you can swap the pumpkin seeds for walnuts.
- Try Feta Cheese in place of Goat Cheese.
How to Make this Raspberry Salad
Start by slicing the shallots into thin strips.
Mix together the oil, raspberry balsamic vinegar, and salt. Submerge the shallots into the dressing mixture and leave to marinate for at least 1 hour, but up to 24.
Wash and chop the kale. Remove as much as the main stem as possible. Place it in a large bowl and add either a little bit of salt or a few splashes of lemon juice. Massage the kale until it softens.
Add the kale to the serving bowl, then top with the raspberries, marinated onions, pumpkin seeds, and feta cheese. Top with extra dressing and serve!
What to Serve With this Raspberry Kale Salad
This salad goes great with other summertime recipes! Serve it with Chicken Feta Spinach Burgers, Healthy Burger Bowls, Gluten Free Meatloaf, or Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes.
To keep with the fruit theme, serve it with Gluten Free Strawberry Crisp or Gluten Free Blueberry Cobbler!
Tools Needed
You don't need many tools to make this easy dish! You'll need:
- Cutting Board
- Chef's Knife
- Measuring Cups
- Small Mixing Bowl
- One Large Serving/Mixing Bowl
Special Diets
Made as is, this recipe is gluten free!
It can easily be made dairy free if you omit the goat cheese.
Read the label on the raspberry infused vinegar! Some have sugar and would not be Whole30 or Paleo friendly. If you are following either of these diets, choose accordingly!
If needed, use just balsamic vinegar to keep it Whole30 compatible and Paleo friendly if you can't find one without sugar.
Top Tip for Raspberry Kale Salad
Don't skip marinating the shallots! Raw shallots, much like onions, will have a sting in each bite and the marinating step helps to reduce that.
Note that their will be more dressing than needed for this salad, since it needs to marinate the onions. Use it for another salad too!
Yes, you can eat kale raw in a salad! I would recommend massaging it to make it more palatable.
The best way to soften kale for salad is by massaging it! Do just as it sounds-use your hands and fingers to gently massage the kale, you'll be able to see the color change and feel the texture change.
For this recipe, you put the dressing on the salad after the kale has been massaged, before serving!
The reason for massaging kale for a salad is to make if softer and more digestible. If you skip the massaging step, the kale will be tougher and chewier.
Raspberry Kale Salad
Ingredients
- 1 shallot
- ¾ cup olive oil
- ½ cup raspberry blush balsamic vinegar
- pinch salt
- 1 head kale
- 1 6 oz package raspberries
- ⅛ cup pumpkin seeds
- ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
Instructions
- Chop the shallot into long strips.
- Mix together the oil, vinegar, and salt.
- Submerge the shallots into the oil mixture and let them rest for at least 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, wash and chop the kale. Place in a large bowl and add a dash of salt (or a few dashes of lemon juice). Massage the kale until it just starts to wilt and is softened.
- Add the raspberries and pumpkin seeds to the kale. Add the marinated onions, and as much of the dressing as desired.
- Serve as is or carefully mix together, trying not to smush the raspberries, and serve!
More Healthy Salads to Try
Did you make this recipe? Let me know in the comments below how it turned out, and leave a rating!
Feel free to share a photo of the finished product and tag me @thecleanhappylife on Instagram!
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