A lady can never have too many recipes for kale.

I’m on a bit of a fitness kick at the moment. I’ve been doing Tracy Anderson’s dance based mat workout most days of the week. I love it. I’m only using two pound weights but it’s so hard I feel like I’m giving birth with my arms. Then one day a week I’m doing Yogalosphy with Mandy Ingber. A pop culture note about my regime: Tracy is Gwenyth Paltrow’s trainer and Mandy is Jennifer Aniston’s trainer and both of them have had relationships with Brad Pitt. Weird, right? Look, I’m doing hundreds of leg lifts a week, I have to think about something.

I love kale in the springtime. I love kale in the fall…

Anyway, despite the wretched word combo title, the Yogalosphy DVD is really good. Mandy has kind of a cute crackpot sense of humour and leads the video on some gorgeous dock in LA with bright blue sky overhead and birds streaking past which is a great distraction from that fact that this woman really, really hurts me. I’m not sure what it is. I don’t even feel like I’m working that hard when I do the DVD but the next day I feel like I have the flu and it hurts to step off the curb.  Something must be working.  Anyway, because moderate(ha!) exercise can help one absorb calcium I thought I’d supercharge my stores with this satisfying salad. I’m a fan of vegan calcium sources like leafy greens and sesame seeds because I feel I don’t digest dairy well. It doesn’t matter how much of a mineral or vitamin a food contains, if I’m not digesting it, I’m not absorbing it.  Plus, as you know I’ve never met a kale salad I didn’t like(e.g. here and here) and I thought it was about time for a fresh riff. Happy Monday everyone. Do something good for yourself today. xox Jasmine

Sesame Kale Salad
Serves 2

2 Tbsp Sunflower Oil
1 Tbsp raw unhulled tahini  I know this is a pain to find but the nutritional benefits of tahini made with unhealed sesame seeds make it so worth it. In Canada, you can order it here. My US friends can get in on the action here.
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or wheat-free soy sauce
1/4 cup of sesame seeds or hemp seeds
4 cups kale leaves, stems and ribs removed, broken into bite-sized pieces.

Directions
In a small bowl whisk together the sunflower oil, the tahini, the lemon juice, the sesame oil and the Bragg’s or soy sauce. Pour over the kale and massage well into the leaves with clean hands. Toss in the sesame or hemp seeds. Allow to stand for 20 minutes or so so that the kale wilts a bit. Serve and enjoy.