Kale Caesar Salad with Parmesan Popcorn Croutons
4
Points®
Total time: 30 min • Prep: 15 min • Cook: 15 min • Serves: 4 • Difficulty: Easy
We love popcorn as a crunchy, salty, satisfying whole-grain snack—but it turns out that it’s also great on a salad. It may not work so well in a salad, but on a salad, as a stand-in for bread-based croutons, it’s a natural. We up the crunch factor by briefly baking the popcorn with some grated Parmesan for savory goodness and crispy edges, and then sprinkle it atop a Caesar-style kale salad. We kept things vegetarian here, so there’s no anchovy in the dressing—but if you’d like, you could stir in a little anchovy paste.
Ingredients
Cooking spray
4 spray(s)
Parmesan cheese
1.5 oz
Plain air popped popcorn (prepared without oil)
2 cup(s)
Kosher salt
0.375 tsp
Black pepper
0.375 tsp
Fresh Tuscan kale
8 cup(s)
Olive oil
2 tsp
Light mayonnaise
2 Tbsp
Plain fat free Greek yogurt
1 Tbsp
Fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp
Garlic
1 medium clove(s)
Instructions
1
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grate 1 oz of Parmesan to yield ¼ cup; shave remaining ½ oz of Parmesan and set aside. In a medium bowl, coat popcorn with cooking spray. Sprinkle popcorn with 2 tbsp grated cheese, ⅛ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper; toss to coat. Arrange popcorn mixture on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350°F until lightly browned, about 15 minutes, stirring after 8 minutes.
2
In a large bowl, combine kale and oil; massage with hands until kale starts to wilt. In a small bowl, whisk mayonnaise, yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, remaining 2 tbsp grated cheese, and remaining ¼ tsp salt and ⅛ tsp pepper. Combine dressing with kale, tossing well to coat. Arrange kale in a large bowl; top with shaved cheese and popcorn. Serve immediately.
3
Serving size: 1 ¾ cups
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