Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

Everyone loves this Kale Salad with Cheesy Chickpeas and Lemon Tahini Dressing. It is light, refreshing, creamy, and nutrient packed. The perfect salad to pair with all your summertime potlucks.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

Happy Monday, folks

Over the weekend I did something I rarely do. I went out to brunch with myself. I realized that I love brunch and there is no reason that being single should get in the way of this pleasure. So, crossword in hand, I went to one of my favorite brunch spots in Portland, grabbed a seat at the bar, and enjoyed a meal with myself.

It was fantastic.

I'm learning a lot about being single right now. Getting married at a young age didn't leave room for me to experience this before. I'm not going to sugarcoat anything. You know me; I never do. Many times it's hard and lonely and most weekends are spent just wishing I had someone to go camping with, but there are also many joys in singleness and that is what I'm choosing to explore thoughtfully and curiously and sometimes, even eagerly.

Wanna know something super cool about this recipe?

The kale came from my own backyard!

I know, I know...to many of you gardening is no big deal but I don't have the greenest of thumbs, so when something I can actually eat grows out of my garden beds, it's pretty damn exciting. And so, to honor this kale, I am sharing with you one of my favorite kale salads - this Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing.

Ingredients for Kale Salad

This Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing is inspired by one of my favorite salads at Whole Foods. It's a simple massaged kale salad with a lemony, garlicky, tahini dressing.

Here is everything you need.

Recommended Equipment

For this recipe, you will need basic cooking equipment including a mixing bowls, and kitchen utensils. You will also need a large salad bowl, a chef’s knife, and a cutting board. (<<affiliate links)

Check out the full list of my recommended kitchen tools and gadgets.

How to Make a Vegan Kale Salad

Step One – Massage the kale

As we’ve talked about, this salad starts with a base of kale.

When eating raw kale, it’s important that we give it a gentle massage. A simple massage helps to break down the toughness and bitterness while releasing sweetness and tenderness into the leaves, greatly enhancing the flavor and texture.

Massaging kale is really easy. First, you’ll want to chop the kale finely and place it in a large bowl. Next, drizzle it with a little olive oil and salt. The oil and salt help break down the leaf’s toughness allowing it to tenderize even more.

As you massage the kale you will notice the leaves get more vibrantly green with a bit of silky shine. The kale will also shrink in volume as the leaves tenderize. (See pictures below).

Step Two – Lemon Tahini Dressing

Once the kale is nice and massaged, you’ll then tossed it with a homemade Lemon Tahini Dressing.

This dressing is super straight forward. Simply place all the ingredients for the dressing - that's the tahini, water, lemon juice, garlic, maple syrup, cumin, and salt - in a small food processor and blend until silky smooth.

Step Three – Add the Cheesy Chickpeas

To make the chickpeas, simply place them in a small bowl and toss them with lemon juice, salt, and nutritional yeast. Feel free to taste and adjust seasonings.

Add them to the salad and toss together.

Serving and Storing

Serving – This is a big salad. On its own, it is enough for 2 servings. It will serve 4 if you’re serving it as part of a larger meal.

Storing – Store the leftover salad in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. Store salad dressing separating for up to 2 weeks.

More Kale Salad Recipes

• Classic Kale Caesar Salad
• Warm Kale Salad with Curried Cauliflower
• Winter Kale Salad w/ Poppy Seed Dressing
• Greek Kale Salad

Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

This Kale Salad with cheesy chickpeas and Lemon Tahini Dressing is a light and refreshing salad to pair with all your summertime potlucks.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 6

Calories: 81kcal

Author: Sarah McMinn

Ingredients

Kale Salad

• 1 bunch kale, chopped
• juice of 1 lemon
• ½ teaspoon salt

Lemon Tahini Dressing

• ¼ cup tahini
• ¼ cup water
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 clove garlic
• 2 teaspoons maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon salt

Cheesy Chickpeas

• 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Place kale in a large bowl. Add lemon juice and salt and gently massage for 1-2 minutes. Set aside while preparing the remaining salad ingredients.
• Combine all the ingredients for the tahini dressing in a food processor and blend until smooth.
• Place chickpeas in a small bowl and add lemon juice and nutritional yeast. Stir together.
• Add chickpeas and tahini dressing to kale, toss to combine, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

Serving and Storing – This is a big salad. On its own, it is enough for 2 servings. It will serve 4 if you’re serving it as part of a larger meal. Store the leftover salad in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. Store salad dressing separating for up to 2 weeks.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 81kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 5g | Sodium: 395mg | Potassium: 142mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 950IU | Vitamin C: 12.1mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 0.8mg