Chinese Inspired 'Kale' Chips

I'm so excited to be blogging my first pabulum inspired post! I've always been a food lover and am always searching for new flavor experiences. My first recipe was inspired by the recent wave of kale inspired dishes and works perfectly to satisfy my flavor loving taste buds. 

Sesame and Soy Kale Swiss Chard Crisps

1 bunch of Swiss Chard (removed from stems)
1 tbsp of low sodium soy sauce (or to your desired taste)
1 tbsp of sesame oil (or replace with olive oil)

Optional: After baking sprinkle with 1 tbsp of sesame seeds

1. Gather all necessary ingredients and tools.
2. Remove swiss chard from stems - this can be done with a simple grab around the chard and downward sweeping motion on the stem.
3. Wash, drain and pat dry the swiss chard leaves.
4. Add the low sodium soy and sesame oil to the greens in a large bowl and toss until evenly coated.
5. Prepare baking pan by double layering with parchment paper.
6. Single layer the swiss chard until the surface of the pan is covered.
7. Bake the dressed chard for 15-20 minutes in a 300ºF oven, or until crisp (this will be apparent when the leaves crunch away from the parchment paper).
8. Remove from oven and wait to cool down (should only take a few minutes).
9. Eat immediately or store in air tight container up to three days.
10. Clean up! A clean kitchen is a happy and healthy kitchen.

Start off by gathering your ingredients - low sodium soy sauce and pure sesame oil

Wash your greens thoroughly, drain well and then pat dry.

Toss the greens until they are evenly coated. Then single layer the greens flat on a lined pan at 300ºF for 15-20 minutes.

Remove from oven once crisp and plate up!

This recipe can also be applied to anything else in the leafy greens 'super- food' category, such as kale and collard greens. Can't decide on which one? Here is a low down of the benefits of each green. 

Kale

Although it contains twice the number of calories than it's other leafy counterparts (130 calories/cup), it is a great source of fiber, vitamin A (346%), vitamin C (89%), calcium (9%) and iron (6%). It tastes similar to a cross between brussels sprouts and asparagus - yummy!

Collard Greens

These tasty greens have a low calorie count at 49 per cup and are considered to be the healthiest of the three. Collards contain the highest amount of fiber of all three greens, 4 grams of protein, vitamin A (308%), vitamin C (58%), iron (12%) and calcium (27%). They taste similar to kale but are of a milder flavor. 

Swiss Chard

This chosen vegetable of the day has a mere 35 calories per cup but contains the most sodium of the three, at 313 micro-grams. It contains vitamin A (214%), vitamin C (53%), calcium (10%) and a whopping 22% of iron! Swiss chard has a similar flavor to spinach or beet greens. 

Whatever you choose, I hope this inspires you to try something new in the kitchen!

Until next time,

Kelly