Garlicky Kale Chips!

Hey! How was your (hopefully) long 4th of July weekend?! Mine was wonderful. Our house is looking more and more like a real home, and my garden has far fewer weeds than it did this time last week!! Thanks to my green-thumbed mom, of course. Plus, I now have veggies growing!! EEK! Stay tuned for recipes with those once they are ready for picking. :)

So, kale chips (these with a side of sweet potato fries).

Everybody's raving about them, right? Or if they aren't, perhaps they will be once they take a gander at making them. Its quite easy! I like mine garlicky, and if you can have Parmesan I totally suggest you sprinkle some on top to add to the deliciousness. I've never had them with Parmesan myself, but the pictures I saw looked super good with the addition of a bit of cheese! Anyways. These are crispy and tasty and easy to make and of course healthy. If you aren't a fan of veggies this might be your golden ticket to increasing your green intake! Without further ado.

Garlicky Kale Chips

wax paper
1 bunch of kale, smaller pieces of leaves pulled off the stems (you can make them however small or large you'd like!)
olive oil, in spray form (did I mention my awesome sprayer my mom got me!? So much better than buying the can version! This is a good example.)
garlic powder
onion powder
salt (coarse sea salt would work too)
Parmesan (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. After washing your kale, make sure you dry it off really well. Cut or tear the leaves off the stems, then cut/tear into smaller pieces. Spread wax paper over a cookie sheet, then spread kale leaves out across the entire thing. You can cover the whole sheet, just try not to layer the kale over each other or it won't cook to even crispiness on all of them. Spray lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with the garlic and onion powder (this is a bit of a guess, since measuring it out wouldn't work. You'd end up with a douse of garlic on a very small area of kale!) Sprinkle a small amount of salt over the entire sheet. Add your Parmesan if you're a dairy fan! Bake 15-20 minutes. Check them at 15 minutes, as some people like things not as crisp as others (I like mine close to burnt!). Remove from oven and let cool for a minute, then enjoy while still warm!

Other topping options:

Salt and vinegar.
Paprika and cayenne pepper (spicy!).
BBQ rub.
Dill weed and salt (dill pickle chips, anyone?).
Parsley and feta (whoa, that could be good).

The options are endless! Make it your own and pat yourself on the back for your creativity.

I'm headed back to my kitchen (that I own...eek!) for another cup of coffee. Surprise, surprise. ;) Until we meet again (soon)!!

--KQ