raw tuscan kale salad

with only a month left, the farmers market is winding down for the season. but the crucifers! they're killing me. between an enormous savoy cabbage, a gloriously spiny crown of romanesco cauliflower, a few leeks and a small bag of bramley seedlings, which i've been heretically eating raw for the past few weeks, i could barely fit everything in my jansport. but the tuscan kale was too beautifully reptilian, too inky velvety green to pass by, even if it meant mushing it under some apples.
most of my encounters with kale have been of the curly or red russian variety, but a word of caution: those will simply not work in a raw salad. the leaves are too thick, too chewy and too indisputably bitter. tuscan kale, the flat, scaly looking kind, is more difficult to track down, but if you can only get the curly type, do yourself a favor and cook it somehow. after all, this salad is almost identical to my favorite garlicky greens, minus the sautéeing part.

but what makes this salad brilliant is the unadultered rawness of the leaves. the bitterness is counteracted beautifully by a lightly puckery dressing, ribboned with nuttiness from a generous blanket of pecorino. it's the best reinvented caesar salad you've ever had. leaving the ribs in the kale gives you a second layer of crunchiness, a more herbaceous resilience to echo the brittle breadcrumb crisp.
i have not been feeding myself particularly well the last week. i will be the first to admit that the bulk of what i ate yesterday was pie. there may also have been a few mugs of vin chaud involved. it's hard to treat your body properly when the rain starts to kick in and all you want to do is sit in front of a fire and listen to mazzy star and eat roasted nuts. but after putting away a huge bowl of this (with, i admit, a poached egg), i feel significantly more ready to suffer a rainy bike ride to school, swim some laps, and spend the evening with baudrillard.

raw tuscan kale salad with pecorino
by melissa clark for the new york times
serves 4

• 1 bunch tuscan kale (also known as black or lacinato kale)
• 1 thin slice country bread (part whole-wheat or rye is nice), or 1/4 cup homemade bread crumbs (coarse)
• 1/2 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup finely grated pecorino cheese (parmesan will work in a pinch), more for garnish
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, more for garnish
• freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes (i used more)
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

trim bottom 2 inches off kale stems and discard. slice kale, including ribs, into 3/4" wide ribbons. you should have 4 to 5 cups. place kale in a large bowl.
if using bread, toast it until golden on both sides. tear it into small pieces and grind in a food processor until mixture forms coarse crumbs.
using a mortar and pestle, or with the back of a knife, pound garlic into a paste. transfer garlic to a small bowl. add 1/4 cup cheese, 3 tbsp oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper flakes and black pepper, and whisk to combine. pour dressing over kale and toss very well to thoroughly combine (dressing will be thick and need lots of tossing to coat leaves).
let salad sit for 5 minutes, then serve topped with bread crumbs, additional cheese and a drizzle of oil.