My favorite new KALE salad!

I recently had the pleasure of attending a family reunion/90th birthday party in Florida (hello family!). There's something you should know about my family: we LOVE food and we love to eat! For me, this salad was the culinary highlight of the trip, made by my cousin Lisa. As you can see in the image (courtesy of Bon Appetit), the original recipe calls for some cheese. However, trust me when I say you'll NEVER miss it in this recipe. It's one of those recipes that just looks okay on paper, but something about the dressing really adds a lot of flavor and ZIP :)

Kale & Brussels Sprout Salad
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 small garlic clove, finely grated
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for seasoning
Freshly ground black pepper
2 large bunches of Tuscan kale (about 1 1/2 pounds total), center stem discarded, leaves thinly sliced
12 ounces brussels sprouts, trimmed, finely grated or shredded with a knife
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided (more than I care for...)
1/3 cup almonds with skins, coarsely chopped

Combine lemon juice, Dijon mustard, shallot, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and a pinch of pepper in a small bowl. Stir to blend; set aside to let flavors meld. Mix thinly sliced kale and shredded brussels sprouts in a large bowl.

Measure 1/2 cup oil into a cup. Spoon 1 tablespoon oil from cup into a small skillet; heat oil over medium-high heat. Add almonds to skillet and stir frequently until golden brown in spots, about 2 minutes. Transfer nuts to a paper towel-lined plate. Sprinkle almonds lightly with salt.

Slowly whisk remaining olive oil in cup into lemon-juice mixture. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Dressing, kale mixture, and toasted almonds can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover dressing and kale mixture separately and chill. Cover almonds and let stand at room temperature.

Add dressing to kale mixture; toss to coat. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Garnish with almonds.

Original recipe:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Kale-Brussels-Sprout-Salad-368295