Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Let’s be honest, I’ve never been a huge celebrator of St. Patrick’s Day. As someone who is 100% Greek, I never grew up celebrating it. In college I spent it like I would any other holiday, with lots of drinking. I do pretend to like it for Tim’s sake, I suppose. I mean, he is 100% Irish, so I guess I have to right? This year we didn’t have any specific St. Patrick’s Day celebrations to attend, but we did get out and see friends on both Friday and Saturday night. Did any of my Boston readers go to the parade in Southie? Should I be ashamed to admit that I have never gone?!

Anyways, I figure while the rest of the world is enjoying corn beef and cabbage, bangers and mash, and Irish car bomb cupcakes today, I will present to you an exciting SALAD. Oh yeah, get pumped. I say it’s an Irish salad because it has ingredients that are green (kale), white (feta), and orange (blood orange). That means a salad is Irish right, if it has the colors of the Irish flag?

Kale and Blood Orange Salad

Kale and Blood Orange Salad

Ingredients

  • 1 bag of kale, chopped with stems removed
  • 2-3 blood oranges, segmented
  • 1/2 cup unsalted slivered almonds
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened dried cranberries (or more as preferred)
  • 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • Salad dressing of choice

If adding chicken to the salad:

  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 cups low sodium chicken broth (or enough to cover about half the chicken in a crock pot)
  • 2 tbsp ground mustard
  • salt and pepper to taste

Kale and Blood Orange Salad Ingredients

Directions

  1. Optional step if using meat: Put the chicken breasts in a crock pot. Add enough chicken broth to cover about half the chicken. Add two tablespoons of ground mustard, and season with salt and pepper. Cook on low for about 7 hours or on high until the temperature is around 165. When chicken is finished cooking, shred with a fork.
  2. When ready to compile the salad ingredients, massage the kale with your hands. This helps remove some of the bitter taste from the green. Place all kale leaves in a large bowl.
  3. Add segmented blood oranges, slivered almonds, dried cranberries, and shredded chicken to the bowl of kale. Toss so the ingredients are well dispersed throughout.
  4. Top with crumbled feta (see what I did there?) and salad dressing of choice.
  5. Enjoy!

Kale and Blood Orange Salad

Tim has been OBSESSED with blood oranges lately. He did the grocery shopping last week and came home with ten of them. Ten! He’s been making blood orange smoothies, I’ve been adding a wedge here and there in my seltzer, and we’ve both been having them for a healthy snack. In this salad, the blood oranges add a nice citrus component against the kale, and the cranberries add the perfect hint of sweetness. Plus, this recipe is super easy and quick to make for brown bagging your lunch for work. For the win.

Kale and Blood Orange Salad

Definitely F&F recommended!

–Let’s chat–
Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? Do you have any traditional Irish foods that you like to cook or bake? What’s your favorite “green” recipe?

For some past St. Patrick’s Day pictures, check out this post.

For a St. Patrick’s Day workout, click here.

And for some more F&F green themed recipes for today, check out: