Kale Crunch Chicken Salad
A crave-worthy Kale Crunch Chicken Salad with a sweet and savory combo. You'll love the sweetened spiced pumpkin brittle crunch with each bite. This salad is fresh, filling, and perfect for meal prep!
Not Your Boring Kale Salad
You know those salads that are basically just sad lettuce and regret? Yeah, this isn't that. This Kale Crunch Chicken Salad is loaded with flavor, texture, and a little surprise on top---pumpkin seed brittle; sweet, salty, crunchy goodness with just a touch of heat. It's the kind of salad that feels indulgent and special but fuels your body just the same.
Let's Chat About This Pumpkin Seed Brittle Situation
Seriously the hardest part about making this pumpkin brittle, is not eating it all before it makes its way in the salad. It's lightly sweetened and has a wonderful warm spiced flavor. It's super crunchy but won't break your teeth. I love that you can whip it up and have it baked and munching on in less than 30-minutes. It would also be a really cool homemade gift to share. You only need....
- Pumpkin seeds or pepitas
- Honey
- A few pantry spices--cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, etc..
Mix it all together and bake it in the oven. It only needs to cool a few minutes, then break it into pieces and try to stop yourself. All the details are in the recipe card below.
Ingredients For Kale Chicken Salad
- Kale- Give the kale a good chop.
- Chicken- We use the convenience of a store-bought rotisserie chicken.
- Apple- Use a good crunchy apple like honey crisp, pink lady, or granny smith.
- Dried cranberries- This offers some tartness and texture to the salad.
- Feta cheese- If you don't care for feta cheese, parmesan is a good substitute.
- Pumpkin brittle- Pumpkin seeds, honey, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, cloves, and salt.
- Dressing- Mayo, olive oil, honey, apple cider vinegar, poppy seeds, salt and pepper.
How To Make The Pumpkin Brittle (So Easy)
Heat the oven to 350. Mix the honey with the pumpkin seeds then mix in the spices and salt. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool and break into pieces. Make a big batch of the pumpkin brittle, you'll want it on everything---trust me!
Assemble Kale Chicken Salad
- Prep the kale- Add the chopped kale to a large bowl with a little olive oil and lemon juice. Use clean hands to massage the kale until it feels tender and the leaves turn bright green.
- Make the dressing- In a small bowl combine the mayo, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, poppy seeds, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Assemble the salad- To the kale add in chopped chicken, cranberries, crumbled feta, diced apple, and pumpkin brittle. Pour on all the dressing, toss to coat well and top with more pumpkin brittle.
Pro Tips
To keep the apples from turning brown, toss them with a little lemon juice. This will ensure they don't turn color even after a few days in the fridge.
Massaging the kale is a must! This step makes a huge difference in the over all texture and experience of the salad. Massaging your kale with a little olive oil and lemon juice, or salt, breaks down those stubborn fibers and softens the whole vibe-literally. It turns from "I taste like a garden rake" to "I'm tender, and enjoyable to eat".
Kale Crunch Chicken Salad
Equipment
- 1 Large sheet pan
- 1 large salad bowl
- 2 small mixing bowls
Ingredients
Pumpkin Seed Brittle
- 1 ½ cups shelled pumpkin seeds or pepitas
- 3 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
Poppy Seed Dressing
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
- 1 teaspoon honey
- salt and pepper to taste
Kale Salad
- 5 cups chopped kale
- 1 ½ cups cooked diced or shredded chicken we use rotisserie chicken
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 apple, diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- lemon juice
Instructions
For the Pumpkin Brittle
- Start by heating the oven to 350℉ and place a silicone mat or parchment paper on a large sheet pan.
- In a medium bowl combine 1 ½ cups pumpkin seeds with 3 tablespoon honey until well coated. In a small bowl mix together 1 tbsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp each ground nutmeg and ginger, ⅛ tsp ground cloves, and ¾ tsp kosher salt. Add spices to pumpkin seeds and toss gently.
- Spread seeds out evenly on prepared sheet pan and bake in the oven for 15-minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely before breaking into pieces.
Make Dressing
- In a small bowl combine ¼ cup mayo, 1 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tsp poppy seeds, 1 tsp honey, and salt and pepper to taste.
Assemble Salad
- Add 5 cups chopped kale to a large bowl. Drizzle over 1 tbsp olive oil and a splash of lemon juice. Use clean hands to massage kale for 1-minute until leaves start to soften and they become bright green.
- Next add 1 ½ cups chicken, ⅓ cup dried cranberries, ⅓ cup feta cheese, 1 apple diced, and a handful of broken pumpkin seed brittle. Pour all the dressing over the salad and toss well to coat. Garnish with more brittle and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
More Delicious Salads
If you're as into salads as I am, don't stop at this one-there are so many other crave-worthy combos to try! For something sweet and summery, my Kale Salad with Dried Peaches hits the spot, and it's healthy. Want bold flavor with a Mediterranean twist? This Coleslaw Chicken Salad is unexpected and so good.
Craving comfort food that still feels fresh? You'll love my Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad. And if you're all about crunch, Marinated Vegetable Salad and Creamy Broccoli Salad both bring texture and big flavor.
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