Best Ever Kale Chips? Is This Possible?!

     I'll admit, it took me a long time to like homemade kale chips. But like so many healthy things, once I got the taste for them, I couldn't stop! It's a good thing kale and so many other awesome cool-weather-growing greens are easy to find locally grown in greenhouses all over the northeast. It makes these chips healthy not only for me, but for the environment, too! 

     If you've never liked or tried kale chips, I'll confess that the first time I tasted kale it was what I imagined a horse eating. It was a tough, stringy, unappetizing green thing that I could not possibly imagine myself being able to digest before asking for more. Good thing I am often wrong!

     I once had a very smart person admit to me that though she has a low-sugar family, it's always how she manipulates her child's taste-buds to change. "Start by putting a bit of honey, maple, or sugar with something unpalatable, and ease out of the sweetness a little each time your kid tastes the food again. Slowly they get a great association with something they would have otherwise hated outright." Add in some locally-sourced maple sugar from a nearby sugar-house, and never was this smart piece of advice more helpful than with bringing me to a full-out kale addiction. Do try this sweet treat; you'll think a bunch of local kale is one of the tastiest things ever!

Ingredients

• 1 large bundle curly green or purple kale
• 1-2 Tbsp (15-30 ml) melted coconut or avocado oil
• Seasonings of choice (i.e. pinch sea salt, 2 tsp of sugar or maple sugar) 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 225 degrees F (107 C). Use convection bake if you have it to speed cooking time and help chips crisp up even more.
2. Rinse and thoroughly dry kale, then tear into small pieces and discard any large stems.
3. Add to a large mixing bowl and drizzle with oil and seasonings of choice. Toss thoroughly to combine, using hands to distribute the oil and salt and sugar evenly.
4. Spread the kale over 2 large baking sheets, ensuring the kale touches as little as possible to help them crisp while baking.
5. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the pans around and lightly toss/stir kale to ensure even baking. Bake for 5-10 minutes more, or until kale is crispy and very slight golden brown. Watch closely as it can burn easily.
6. Remove from oven and let cool slightly - chips will crisp up even more once out of the oven.
7. Enjoy immediately! Best when fresh. Store leftovers covered at room temperature for 2-3 days.