Leafy greens

Tough and hardy, kale and Brussels sprouts, all chopped up, are the basis of the salad I'm trying this January.

Toasted slivered almonds add some pleasure to the virtuous greens. 

Grated Parmesan  has a further civilizing effect.

 Everyone with aging eyes has had the lecture: eat lots of leafy greens to combat macular degeneration. I try. But lately, I've been discouraged by the whiff of rot that arises every time I open even the freshest new box of lettuce; a little digging around always turns up some clumps of disintegrating leaves.

How could I resist, then, when a new magazine arrived offering a salad that is not only "practically wilt-proof," but is "tamed by dressing" and improves with time in the fridge? At first I doubted: the two main ingredients -- kale and Brussels sprouts -- are ones I could happily live without. But the reason I'm writing this is that it actually works. If you add grated Parmesan, slivered almonds and the simple dressing, the salad is tasty and lasts a few days in the fridge.

Take a bowlful, add sliced apples or pears, chicken or whatever else you want, and you've got a meal and saved your eyes, all in one shot.

Here's the recipe, from the January/February edition of Western Living magazine:

Kale Salad
1 small bunch kale
6 to 8 big Brussels sprouts
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, aged Gouda or pecorino
1/3 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted.

(Wash kale, shake dry, remove tough stems, chop up leaves. Halve sprouts lengthwise and thinly slice to shred them, discarding the tough ends. Put kale and sprouts in bowl.)

Dressing
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp grainy mustard
1 garlic clove, finely crushed
2 tsp sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper

(Shake or stir together all the ingredients, and drizzle over greens. Add Parmesan, almonds, and any other ingredients and toss. Serves 2 to 4.)

I often stay away from magazine recipes, as  complicated ones can be iffy, but this looked simple, and the ingredient list was reasonable.

Almonds on the finished salad. I've found  that adding sliced pear is a nice touch.