Craving something crispy, salty, crunchy, and full of flavor? Put that potato chip bag down and reach for something 100 times better, Kale chips. Kale chips? You may ask. They satisfy every salty and crunchy craving you have and even if you don’t like kale give these a try. I promise you wont regret it like you will that potato chip bag.

Benefits of Kale

1. Low calorie, high in fiber, and has 0 fat. 1 cup only has 36 calories! 
2. High in iron: not sure what Popeye was thinking eating spinach.
3. Packed with antioxidants
4. Anti-inflammatory: 1 cup has 10% the RDA of omega-3 acids
5. High in vitamin A which is great for your skin, vision, and mouth health.

Not only are these chips a friend to your waistline and packed with nutritional benefits, they are a cinch to make. It takes about 25 minutes to whip up a batch and they will hold for 3-5 days in an airtight container. But trust me they wont last you the day. Think of them as the perfect diet snack. If you are on the 17 Day Diet, these chips will get you through cycle one.

STEP 1: You want to remove the leafs from the stems before you begin. To do so hold the bottom end of the kale with one hand and take your other and slide it along the stem pulling the leafs up with you. Now tear the kale into bite-sized pieces, wash, and dry throughly. I filled the sink with water, rinsed the kale, and dried it using a Salad Spinner. You want to dry completely to avoid steaming the kale when you put it in the oven.

STEP 2: Place dried kale in a bowl and toss with 1-2 teaspoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Toss until the kale is well coated and the leafs are shiny.

STEP 3: Lay kale flat on a baking sheet but make sure it isn’t overlapping. If the kale overlaps too much, you will just steam it and it will not get that crispy texture.

STEP 4: Optional: Sprinkle kale with grated parmesan cheese. Sprinkling it over the kale works best. If you toss it in the bowl, all the cheese ends up on the side of the bowl and not on the kale or in your mouth.

STEP 5: Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10-13 minutes. After 10 minutes, keep an eye on it. You don’t want the kale to burn.

STEP 6: Remove from oven and enjoy!

As you see they shrink up a great deal. I used a large head of kale and it took me about 3 batches in the oven to use all the kale. You can also place a couple different baking sheets in the oven at once and you don’t have to worry about rotating them.

Tip of the day: make sure you have floss handy. The crispy kale can easily get stuck in your teeth.