Who doesn’t love a good snack? It’s so easy to open up a bag of chips and just start eating handful after handful. The same can be said for a bucket of popcorn. Unfortunately, we all know that these snacks are empty calories and only leave us wanting more. Plus, the sodium content is through the roof! The good news is that it’s possible to enjoy a crunchy snack in a healthy way.
That’s right, folks, we are talking about kale chips. These crunchy creations are not only addictively delicious, but also highly nutritious. Closely related to cabbage, broccoli, collard greens, and cauliflower, kale offers an assortment of nutrients, including vitamins, A, B6, C, & K, manganese, magnesium, riboflavin, folate, fiber, calcium, and other important plant compounds. The antioxidants in kale include quercetin and kaempferol, both of which are present in large amounts in kale. According to test-tube and animal studies, these compounds work to support heart health, reduce inflammation, slow the growth of cancer cells, and protect against chronic diseases.
What separates these kale chips from the next batch is that you dehydrate them after covering them in a creamy cashew cheese sauce. Because of that, the kale takes a lot longer to get crispy. You will need about 12 hours of dehydration in order to yield a crispy, cheesy kale chip. Before you sauce the kale in cashew cheese sauce, make sure to massage it with sea salt and lemon juice. Once the leaves are coated, you can toss them in the cashew sauce before placing them on dehydrator sheets. Don’t overlap the kale pieces or else they won’t get crispy.
- Prep Time:15m
- Cook Time:12h
- Total Time:12h 15m
- Serves: 4 servings
- Category: Full Body Cleanse Approved, Dehydrated, Appetizers & Snacks, Raw, Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-Free
Ingredients
- 1 bunch kale, washed, stems removed, and torn into bite size pieces
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- 3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 c raw cashews (soaked for 2 hours & drained)
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded & chopped
- 2 tbsp. nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp. water
Instructions
- After removing the thick, central stems from the kale leaves, tear them into chip-size pieces and then add them to a large mixing bowl.
- Season the kale pieces with sea salt and pour the lemon juice over them. Massage the kale until slightly softened and set aside while you prepare the cashew cheese sauce.
- Add the raw cashews (make sure to drain the soaking liquid), bell pepper, nutritional yeast, and water to a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
- Pour the blended cashew mixture over the kale and toss to coat.
- Place the kale pieces in a single layer on a dehydrator sheet and dehydrate at 115º F for 12 hours, or until coating is dry and kale is crispy.
- Remove from the dehydrator and and store in an airtight container. Enjoy!
