Kale chips

I've seen kale chips everywhere. So many chefs on TV have raved about kale chips and I've read a ton of reviews from people who love kale chips more than regular potato chips. Well... if they are that good, I should give them a try!

I've actually been looking for a good way to eat kale. When I was pregnant and couldn't keep my multivitamins down, my midwife wanted me to be eating a protein and fruit smoothie every day.... and add kale to it because kale is so high in vitamins. Now, I don't know about you, but at the height of my nausea, I have no desire to eat a smoothie with anything green floating around in it. Much less risk something like that coming back up.

Anyway, kale is good for you and I needed a good recipe. So on to kale chips.

Ingredients:
Kale
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp vinegar (I used balsamic)
Salt to taste

I'm posting a picture of what kale looks like because I'm not sure I would have known what it looked like earlier in my life. And when I told my husband I was making this recipe, he didn't know what it was.

Moving along, I rinsed the kale and dried it (paper towel or salad spinner works).  I tore kale up into smaller pieces and removed the ribs.

I put them in a plastic bag. Here's my kale in a plastic bag:

I added the oil and vinegar to the bag and mixed everything around. I wanted to make sure all the leaves were coated in oil and vinegar.

I put them on a baking sheet and baked them in the oven for about 15 minutes at 300 degrees. I have read different times and temperatures for making these. I think the trick is to just watch it and make sure they are not undercooked and not overcooked. When I checked on them, I poked at them with a fork. If they were limp I kept cooking. I took them out when I poked at them and they were stiff and crunchy. Then I added the salt.

The review: Well... they tasted about as appetizing as they look... so not that great. I don't know who thinks these are better than potato chips but they must be eating some pretty bad potato chips. Now, to be fair, they weren't terrible. And the more I ate them the more I liked them. But it took some getting used to.

Next time I will tear the leaves into bigger pieces. I didn't realize how much they would shrink in the oven. I also might try them without the vinegar to see if I like them more.

I will probably make them for my husband just to see what he thinks. I don't think I could get either of my kids to eat them. And to be honest, I don't know how often I could get myself to eat them.

Has anyone made kale chips and liked them? Any good recipes to share?