You can and you should. Work hard. Don’t stop. Unless there’s wine. Drink it. Then work harder.
If people don’t get it. Lose em. Find people that do. They exist. Make them your friends. Go thrift shopping. Buy skirts. Talk about ice cream.
Make the world more beautiful. That’s our job while we’re here. And we’re still here. So love well, and hard, and like we won’t be here forever. Because we won’t.
Use your good luck spoon. Throw away your bad luck fork. Remember that texting and driving is dumb. And your car horn never really adequately expresses your anger, so don’t use it and just scream in the car a bit if you must.
Buy kale. Especially if it’s named dino. It’s ok if it has dirt on it. It came from the ground. Wash it well. Combine it with coconut. Roast. Feed it to a person you love. See what happens. You’ll have just made the world more beautiful. Is it really that easy? Sometimes it is. Mind blown.
You might never guess that such a simple combination of ingredients could be so wonderfully lovely.
You also might never guess that I’ve eaten this dish every day for a week straight. That is no exaggeration. It’s so good. So comforting. Soooo the new mac and cheese.
Kale and unsweetened coconut is tossed with soy sauce, sesame oil, sriracha, and olive oil. It’s baked until golden and crisp.
It’s chewy. It’s crunchy. It’s a total mouth workout… and so so good for your body.
Farro is a big hearty grain and it stands up wonderfully to robust kale and coconut. Brown rice would also be quite nice.
This recipe is from Heidi’s Super-Natural Every Day cookbook and inspired by Tracy.
Tracy told me that this dish was serious man food/comfort food. I refused to believe her. I finally made it for myself, fed it to a man… and that was it. Game over. I’m now engaged, pregnant with twins (a boy and a girl), I just won the lottery, someone just bought me a pony, and I have every single pair of shoe that I’ve ever wanted.
Except none of that happened…. but this meal was simply exceptional.
Crunchy Kale and Coconut Bowl
makes 4 small servings or 2 large servings
recipe adapted from Shutterbean and Super Natural Every Day
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (or seasoned rice vinegar if you have that on hand) (i know they’re totally different but both work well)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sriracha
scant 1/3 cup olive oil
5 cups dino kale, ribs removed and leaves torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup unsweetened large flake coconut
1 cup uncooked farro
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium pot, bring several cups of water to a boil. Salt the water (like you would for cooking pasta) and add farro. Reduce heat and simmer farro, uncovered, for 17-20 minutes, until farro is softened but still has a bit of a bite. Drain in a colander and set aside.
In a small mix together sesame oil (or rice vinegar), soy sauce, and siracha. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking as you drizzle it in so that the dressing emulsifies. You can also place all of the ingredients in a small jar and shake to emulsify.
Place the kale pieces and coconut on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle half (or a bit more) of the prepared dressing over the kale and coconut. Toss around to coat. Bake for 12-18 minutes, until browned and crispy. Remove from the oven. Divide farro and crispy kale into bowls and top with a bit more dressing. Enjoy warm.
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Ok…I am offically a nerd. Listening to you podcase and reading your blog. Going to so try your coconut kale soon! After a good “cry…:)”
Just had kale and mushrooms with soy sauce tonight! The coconut is totally inspired.
I have kale in my fridge. This is so happening tonight.
Looks beautiful!! I have a bowl of cooked barley in my fridge, I just might try this yummy dish with that instead of farro. I might! You can’t stop me :)
Nice plate! And I do scream in my car, but I know I should keep zen ^^
this looks fantastic, it will definitely be my lunch tomorrow.
And, SHUT THE FRONT DOOR, girl, there you are in my Sunset Magazine!! I might have yelped a little yelp of JOY when I saw you there! Woo Hoo!!
I’m very excited for you!
saw you on sunset! wow. making the kale and having the melty chocolate pnut butter cake for a capper. your blog brightens my day.
Never in a million years would I have thought to call this “man food”. So need to give it a try!
Kale is earthy and you can feel it’s green goodness doing you good as you eat it. The coconut here is a nice touch!
“I’m now engaged, pregnant with twins (a boy and a girl), I just won the lottery, someone just bought me a pony, and I have every single pair of shoe that I’ve ever wanted.”
BWA HAHAHA! If only! What stories you’d have for us then!
love this post! and love dino kale. and coconut! I shall have to try making this flavor combo! sounds so delicious! thanks for the idea!
Not going to lie, I was a skeptic. Kale was certainly not a regular on my menus (okay, I’ve never cooked with it. Ever.) but this recipe? Amaze.
Have I told you lately that I love you?!
This (as always) looks amazing.
I think I might try my first kale meal.
: ))
Jen
this looks incredibly delicious…and congrats! the sunset piece is awesome….and so deserving. thank you so much for all that you share here.
This sounds so good. nom nom nom. I would never have thought of a combo like coconut, kale, and farro but I think it would be delicious
This looks like an excellent variation on the excessive amounts of sauteed kale I’ve been eating as of late. I’ll have to give it a go. Meanwhile, good luck with those babies, and the pony!
i ate too much….
Hi Joy —
This sounds positively yummy!!! May I ask where you get the large, flaked coconut? I have looked for it for another recipe with no luck. Any suggestions?
You totally rock!!!
I found it pretty cheap in the bulk section at Whole Foods
this is my fave of all faves of heidi’s recipes. so chewy… so coconutty! the coconut alone has helped me love kale.
I LOVE YOU!
I love a dish with a hearty helping of grains and greens. This being a man pleasin’ dish and all should go over well in my house. I live with three boys and a man.
This recipe sounds so good healthy. One of those recipes that makes you feel healthier just reading about it – also one of those recipes that I wish I thought of myself!
I’m pretty sure I tell you this everytime, but I LOVE THOSE BOWLS!
Seriously…where’d you get them?
If this isn’t a reason to detox then I don’t know what is! Looks scrumptious!
Truer words were never spoken. This is superb. Just making it now. Took a long time to locate some farro (Whole Foods on Lincoln in SM finally carry it). I have to share my secret spot in SoCal….Olive Oil & Beyond, a little owner-operated shop on Balboa Island. He carries about a hundred varieties of organic olive oils from all over the world and balsamics. And he encourages samples, shows you how to mix the oils and vinegars and suggests recipes. (Blueberry balsamic + Picqual olive oil + gorgonzola = a great summer salad dressing). I digress. So I used their sesame oil and replaced the soy with a white grapefruit balsamic. Now I’m planning to eat more of this than is probably healthy. So grateful!!!
pony, engagement, pregnancy. things we all want. let’s make some kale. i’m stoked.
This sounds right up my husband’s alley. Yum!
Made it last night. Delish!
I love kale lately – sounds amazing!
I made a version of this last night and my husband loved it!!! Except I cooked the kale in some peanut sauce and topped with sauteed portabello mushrooms. Wish I had thought about the coconut!
What is sriracha?? Found Dino have the coconut..could not find farro? Or sriracha but the again I wasn’t sure where to look!
Sriracha is a Chinese chili sauce, so look in the asian aisle. Near the hot sauces, and though it comes in a few brands, get the one with the see-through bottle, the rooster on the side, and the green cap!
Oh, and if farro was hard to find, look for wheat berries. Pretty much the same thing! Barley works as a replacement if farro is a no-go too! :)
Thanks! I stood there debating and picked the one with the green cap and the rooster…must have been telepathy! Also found some farro…!!! Thanks!!!
And since I could not wait to taste it Idipped my leftover kobacha squash in it for lunch…yum…needed it in my life!!!!!( the sauce not that farro!)
Nevermind, now that I am home I googled it…that is what I thought it was.. Just not at my pcc market but I know I have seen it at the grocery!!!
ha! love it. Love the recipe and love your sentiment at the start. Beautiful and so true. I really need to throw away by bad luck fork…
Heidi xo
By the way, I was just reading my February issue of Food & Wine…lo and behold! I love the piece in there about you. You couldn’t have picked a better desert for them to feature. Congrats!! :)
Alright girl…only cause you said you ate it every day for a week – I’ma give this a shot. It was the sriracha that sold me, though…
Kale and coconut – that’s a pairing that I could completely fall in love with.
Your blog posts are always so well written — simple, and heart felt. My favourite part of this particular post (besides the delicious recipe) : ” So love well, and hard, and like we won’t be here forever. Because we won’t.” – - simply gorgeous.
I tried roasting kale once… it burnt to a crisp in the oven. Let that be a lesson to all! — watch your kale closely!
All of my favorite things are in this recipe. I have seriously been dreaming about making it since you posted this. Thank you for continuing to fuel my kale obsession!!!
i love this. i love that you guys call it man food. im gonna give it to my man and see if it fits the “meat & potato boy.”
That does it! I’ve heard so many wonderful things about this salad in blogland. It is time to try it.
I halved this and I’m enjoying right now!!!
I made this for lunch today and I have to agree it really is like healthy comfort food!
I’m such a kale nerd and this sounds amazing! I’ll be making it tonight!
I have all of these ingredients. In my house. Right now. I’m so excited. I’m making this tonight.
this is so amazing. i made it a couple of days ago, and am making it again right now. love, love, love and love it!
I love crunchy kale and this dish sounds really lovely. I wonder if any of you have tried this baking technique with other cooking greens (e.g. mustards, collards, etc.) I have a bunch of assorted greens in my fridge, guess I’ll be experimenting with this tonight!
Cannot wait to try this; coconut and kale are two of my favorite foods. Thanks for the revolutionary thinking on this one. Will have to mail order the large flake coconut but think it will be worth it as I don’t think I will get the bacon-ness coming through with the little stuff.
I made this tonight with some few alterations – I just about doubled the dressing and roasted some sweet potatoes along with the kale (I put in the kale about halfway through the roasting process). I also added some sesame seeds and served it with wheatberries. So, SO delicious. I’m in love!
This was so amazing I ate a whole batch on Saturday and another batch on Sunday. My skin is a delicate shade of leafy green ;-)
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