Recipes
Flexible ideas for a week of kale: raw and cooked, quick and a little slower. Not a diet or meal plan — just inspiration to use your bag well.
01
Day 1
Start simple: a raw, lemony salad shows off kale’s fresh crunch, while a golden frittata shows how soft and mellow it becomes when cooked. Make the frittata generous — it is just as good cold the next day. And feel free to swap the days around.
Tip: Wash only the leaves you are about to use, just before cooking: rinse them under cool running water, rub gently and dry well. Keep the rest unwashed in its bag in the fridge’s crisper drawer at 0–4 °C. See how to wash kale.
Salads
Sometimes less is more: fresh kale, bright lemon and your best olive oil. A few minutes of massaging turns the sturdy, curly leaves into a tender, glossy salad that goes with almost anything.
Breakfast
Golden potatoes and soft onion meet wilted kale in a thick, sliceable frittata that starts on the stove and finishes in the oven. Serve it warm for brunch, or cut it into wedges for tomorrow’s lunch — it is just as good cold.
02
Day 2
Two classics with a green twist: kale tabbouleh and kale fattoush. Both are raw, quick and made for sharing — set them in the middle of the table with bread, olives and labneh.
Tip: Dry the leaves really well — in a salad spinner or rolled in a clean towel — so the lemon and olive oil cling to them instead of pooling at the bottom of the bowl. For tabbouleh, chop the leaves very finely.
Salads
Tabbouleh is the queen of the Lebanese table, and here very finely chopped kale takes over part of the parsley, adding a gentle crunch and a soft, earthy note. The rules stay the same as ever: plenty of greens, just a little bulgur and a generous hand with the lemon.
Salads
No Lebanese table feels complete without fattoush: crisp toasted bread, crunchy seasonal vegetables and a sumac and pomegranate-molasses dressing that is both tangy and gently sweet. Here massaged kale joins the bowl, adding a green crunch that holds up to the dressing far longer than lettuce.
03
Day 3
A weekend-style breakfast: a bright green smoothie to start, then a soft omelette folded around wilted kale and spinach. Each uses just 50 g, so together they take 100 g of the bag.
Tip: Strip the leaves for the smoothie but don’t throw the stems away: slice the tender ones thinly and cook them in the omelette pan with the spring onion.
Smoothies
A bright, tangy green smoothie of raw kale, crisp apple, fresh lemon and creamy yogurt, with an optional banana or a sliver of ginger. The apple’s sweetness and the lemon’s sharpness balance kale’s earthy edge, and it is ready in 10 minutes.
Breakfast
Two tender omelettes folded around a soft tangle of wilted kale, spinach and spring onion, finished with a pinch of sumac. Breakfast is ready in about 20 minutes and uses just 50 g of kale, leaving most of the bag for lunch and dinner.
04
Day 4
Kale pesto pasta is on the table in about half an hour. If you still have leaves left, turn them into a tray of crispy kale chips for a crunchy snack.
Tip: Make a double batch of pesto and freeze the extra in an ice-cube tray: a cube or two stirred into hot pasta, soup or stew rescues a busy evening.
Pasta
A bright green pesto of blanched kale, toasted walnuts, garlic, lemon and Parmesan, tossed through pasta with a splash of its cooking water until silky. It is an easy weeknight dinner for four that turns a good part of a 250 g bag into supper in about half an hour.
Healthy snacks
Crisp, lightly salted and gone in minutes. With just a little olive oil and a gentle oven, kale leaves turn into feather-light, paper-thin chips — a snack for all ages and a crunchy topping for soups and salads.
05
Day 5
Quinoa with roasted vegetables, or a chickpea and tahini bowl — both are satisfying, colorful and happy to travel in a lunchbox.
Tip: Cook extra quinoa and roast a second tray of vegetables, then refrigerate them within 2 hours of cooking. On the following days, you only need to wash and massage fresh kale and put the bowl together.
Main courses
Fluffy quinoa folded with lemon-massaged kale and sweet roasted carrots, zucchini, pepper and red onion, all brought together with a garlicky lemon dressing. It is colorful and satisfying, happy to be served warm or at room temperature, and packs well for the next day’s lunch.
Main courses
Chickpeas, tahini and lemon — a trio no Lebanese kitchen is ever without. Here they come together with massaged kale and crunchy oven-roasted chickpeas in one colorful, satisfying bowl that works as a quick lunch or a light dinner.
06
Day 6
Grilled halloumi wraps to start, homemade kale pizza as the main event — or just pick one. Either way, it is an easy evening to share with family and friends.
Tip: Kale for the pizza must be completely dry and lightly oiled so it crisps instead of steaming. The wrap (75 g) and the pizza (100 g) together leave you 75 g for a side of garlic-lemon sautéed kale.
Lebanese & Mediterranean
Golden grilled halloumi rolled up with lemony massaged kale, labneh, tomato, cucumber and fresh mint in warm Lebanese bread. It is a quick, satisfying lunch with the flavors of a Lebanese table, ready in about 20 minutes.
Main courses
A thin, crisp-edged pizza with garlicky tomato sauce, melting mozzarella and kale leaves that turn lightly crisp in a very hot oven. The trick is a little olive oil on the leaves, so they toast at the edges instead of burning.
07
Day 7
Slow down with a pot of creamy white bean stew or a kale and lentil soup — cook one today and save the other for next week. A fresh kale, pomegranate & walnut salad on the side adds crunch and color.
Tip: Soups and stews are the best home for kale stems: chop them finely and cook them with the onion at the start. Cool leftovers, refrigerate them within 2 hours and eat within 3–4 days, reheated until steaming hot.
Soups
A thick, comforting pot of white beans simmered with onion, carrot, garlic and cumin, made creamy simply by mashing some of the beans — no cream needed. The kale goes in for the last few minutes so it stays tender and deep green, and a squeeze of lemon brightens every spoonful.
Soups
On cold days, few things warm you like a bowl of lentil soup. This one is inspired by Lebanese adas bi hamod — brown lentils, potato, garlic and coriander — with kale stirred in at the end so it stays green and tender, and a generous squeeze of lemon to finish.
