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Peach-Pecan Kale Salad With Hot-Honey Vinaigrette

3.7

(6)

PeachPecan Kale Salad With HotHoney Vinaigrette on grey colored platter
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Jillian Knox, prop styling Sophie Peoples

California Soul, Holland’s most recent cookbook, fuses food traditions of the American South and West. Here, Southern stalwarts like pecans and peaches meet a classic Californian kale salad. To turn it into a main dish, just throw on some grilled shrimp, chicken, or spicy sausage.

For Chef Holland, peaches always bring back memories of her father’s favorite dessert, peach cobbler, while pecans are a nod to her mother’s beloved pecan pie. And she’s not alone in thinking that this is the ultimate fruit and nut combination. (If you want to extend the shelf life of your nuts, store them in the refrigerator.) 

While most salads need to be prepared right before serving, kale is a unique exception. It actually gets better when it’s massaged with the dressing in advance. So feel free to make this salad up to 2 hours before serving, and enjoy the flavors of California and the South in one delightful dish.

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What you’ll need

Recipe information

  • Total Time

    30 minutes

  • Yield

    4–6 servings

Ingredients

½

cup pecans

2

large bunches Tuscan kale, ribs and stems removed, leaves thinly sliced

8

Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided

3

large ripe peaches, thinly sliced, divided

2

Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

3

Tbsp. Champagne vinegar

2

tsp. hot honey

1

tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt

½

tsp. freshly ground pepper, plus more

4

oz. Gouda, coarsely chopped

½

cup torn mint leaves

Flaky sea salt

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Preheat oven to 350°. Toast ½ cup pecans on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing once, until slightly darkened and fragrant, 6–8 minutes. Let cool; coarsely chop.

    Step 2

    Toss 2 large bunches Tuscan kale, ribs and stems removed, leaves thinly sliced, with 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a large bowl to coat. Massage leaves until starting to soften, about 3 minutes. Let sit at room temperature at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.

    Step 3

    Toss 1½ large ripe peaches, thinly sliced, with 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice in a small bowl to coat. Set aside.

    Step 4

    Blend 3 Tbsp. Champagne vinegar, 2 tsp. hot honey, 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper, remaining 1½ large ripe peaches, thinly sliced, and remaining 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a blender until smooth and emulsified.

    Step 5

    Pour dressing over kale. Add pecans, 4 oz. Gouda, coarsely chopped, ½ cup torn mint leaves, and reserved peaches; toss to combine. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and season with more pepper.

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Reviews (6)

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  • I made a few changes so that I could use what I had on hand: apple cider vinegar, honey/red pepper flakes, and feta. I'm sure it's even better as written because it was delicious with the substitutions that I made. Thanks, Tonya, for the great seasonal salad recipe!

    • Amy J

    • Fort Mitchell, KY

    • 6/24/2023

  • JAG: Hot Honey like spicy honey. You can buy hot honey, but I just make my own by adding Louisiana Hot Sauce to a bottle of raw unfiltered honey. I do about a 1/4 cup to a 25 oz bottle, but you do your thing! Reap @Make_A_Rabbit_Hug_A_Hound Parm instead of Gouda

    • Anonymous

    • 6/12/2023

  • Honestly, wasn't really a fan and I really wanted to like this. Personally, seems excessive to waste hot honey in the dressing when you could just use honey and cayenne or a different form of heat. The overall salad was just too sweet. The gouda was okay, but a bit lacking with the other ingredients; something like parm or goat cheese or feta or blue cheese or cheddar would have done better.

    • Anonymous

    • NYC

    • 6/5/2023

  • I wanted an excuse to buy and use Hot Honey and this worked perfectly. The only modification I made was to grill the peaches. The added depth of flavor was worth it. The roasted pecans were so delicious that my wife almost at all of them before I could make the salad. I tried with the olive oil trick and without and I didn't notice enough of a difference in texture of the kale so I'll save the time from now on. This recipe is all about the dressing and it is fire!

    • Mosby

    • Atlanta, GA

    • 6/4/2023

  • @JAG: Hot Honey like spicy honey. You can buy hot honey, but I just make my own by adding Louisiana Hot Sauce to a bottle of raw unfiltered honey. I do about a 1/4 cup to a 25 oz bottle, but you do your thing! Reap @Make_A_Rabbit_Hug_A_Hound

    • Reap @Make_A_Rabbit_Hug_A_Hound

    • Texas!

    • 6/4/2023

  • Hot honey like spicy or hot honey like warm temp?

    • Jag

    • 6/1/2023