Athena Calderone's Tuscan Kale Salad with Lemon-Tahini Dressing

I’m late to the Athena Calderone of @eyeswoon party (like by 3 years!), but being home for over 30 days during this Covid-19 quarantine, I’ve had ample time to discover her many talents, from interiors to food. In the last week alone, I’ve made her deliciously moist Citrus-Poppy Olive Oil Loaf (recipe coming soon), her delectably tangy Blood Orange Roasted Beet Salad and this amazing Tuscan Kale Salad with Lemon-Tahini Dressing. These last two recipes are from her Cook Beautiful cookbook (which has quickly moved to the top of my Mother’s Day wish list…hint, hint Baroni brood). This delightful kale salad is a keeper, as my family likes to say when they’re besotted with a new dish. And I’ll be using the divine dressing on lots of different salads this summer.

Note: I didn’t have lacinato kale so I substitued curly kale. And the roasted fennel (with coriander, lemon and parmesan) on the lower left of the plate is a delicious recipe from @edeneats, which I will post soon.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

For the Tahini Dressing:

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

• 2 tablespoons tahini

• ¼ cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon honey

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• 1/8 teaspoon Aleppo pepper, plus more for serving

For the Salad:

• 1 head lacinato kale, stemmed and thinly sliced

• 1 Honeycrisp apple, cored, thinly sliced, and cut lengthwise into matchsticks

• ⅓ cup (45 g) almonds, toasted and roughly chopped

• 2 tablespoons golden raisins

• 2 ounces (55 g) pecorino Toscano, shaved

• 1 lemon, zested

Preparation

Dressing:

1. Using the back of a heavy knife on a cutting board, mash the garlic and salt into a paste.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic paste, tahini, lemon juice, and honey with 2 tablespoons water until a smooth paste forms.

3. Whisk in the oil and Aleppo pepper until fully combined.

Salad:

1. In a large bowl, toss together the kale, apple, almonds, and raisins.

2. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.

3. Top with the shaved pecorino, a sprinkle of Aleppo pepper, and lemon zest.