Almond Butter Tempeh with Kale Crisps

My dear friend Jilan introduced me to her mother, Michelle a couple of days back. Michelle told me her recipe for crispy kale while we were on the kindergarten playground, and I have been so excited to make it. Really, when a good recipe gets passed around, it is a cause to celebrate. Thank you Michelle for sharing your dish! And, this past weekend has been all about celebrating my almost 6 year old daughter's birthday with 20 kids at my house, a pinata and the most perfect spring weather one could ask for. One dish on the party menu for the kids this weekend were vegetable spring rolls with a raw almond butter dipping sauce. I wondered about the sauce I had made, but they were  gone in minutes off the appetizer table. So, I made the sauce again tonight with seared tempeh, roasted spring onions and crispy kale. I even ate it with some sips of sauvignon blanc that made me happy summer is just around the corner.

Almond Butter Tempeh with Crispy Kale
serves 4 small dishes

Crispy Kale
1 bunch kale
1 tbls olive oil
pinch salt

Trim stems off kale, and toss with olive oil and salt in a bowl making sure to coat all the pieces with olive oil and salt. Use your fingers to do this. Spread on a cookie sheet making sure not to overlap the kale on each other. This will help it crisp evenly. Bake at 375 degrees until the edges of kale are starting to brown (about 7-10 min). Remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet or transfer to plate.

Almond Butter Sauce
1/3 cup raw almond butter
2 tbls tamari
2 tbls rice vinegar
1 tbls fresh lemon juice
stir in a bowl until combined.

Spring Onions
3-4 med to large spring onions
2 tsp. olive oil
salt
Trim top off of onions. Slice down the middle and toss with olive oil and salt. Roast 375 for 15 minutes, or until tender, browned and wilted. (I baked mine when I was cooking the kale)

Tempeh
1 package tempeh cut into 1/2 inch thick strips
1 tbls mirin
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp olive oil

In a heavy skillet, heat olive oil and sear tempeh on each side, about 6 minutes. Add mirin and cover for 30 seconds. Toss or flip tempeh so it does not burn. Add toasted sesame oil and toss tempeh gently. When both sides of tempeh pieces are nicely browned, set aside.

To assemble, arrange tempeh on plate and spoon about 1 tbls of almond sauce on top.  Drape onions on top on tempeh and stack 3 large pieces of crispy kale on top!