I love the savory, rich roasts and stews of winter. But sometimes I find myself craving something raw and crunchy to offset all that comfortable goodness. Enter a bright, flavorful and tangy winter slaw made with fresh lacinato kale, collard greens, and red cabbage. These vegetables have powerful health benefits, as we’ll see in a moment. In addition, this ultra-healthy slaw is easy to make, incredibly versatile and delicious, and actually improves after a few days in the refrigerator!

Kale, Collard and Red Cabbage Winter Slaw

Dressing:

• ¾ cup apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup raw, unfiltered honey
• 1 ½ teaspoons Himalayan salt or other real salt
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon mustard seed
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Warm all the dressing ingredients in a small saucepan until the honey is fully melted. Allow to cool completely.

Salad:

• ½ large red cabbage
• 1 lb collard greens and kale mix
• 2 medium shallots or one small onion

Core the cabbage, halve and chop along with the greens into ribbons and small chunks.

Finely slice or chop the shallots.

Combine along with fully cooled dressing in a large bowl. Stir until the dressing fully coats the salad. Weight the salad so that it remains submerged. (Two stacked, heavy dinner plates fit inside my bowl, but you could also fill a Ziploc bag with water and lay it on top of the salad). Refrigerate for 24 hours before eating. Stir well before serving.

Why is this salad so healthy?

Kale, collard greens and red cabbage are all part of the cruciferous family of vegetables. This family of vegetables is one of the two best vegetable families for cancer prevention! (see video on nutritionfacts.org here.

• Red cabbage is a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory food. According to WHFoods.org, red cabbage provides high levels of vitamins K, C and B6. It’s also a very good source of folate and potassium, and a good source of calcium and protein. There are numerous other important vitamins and minerals provided by red cabbage- check out the full nutritional profile here.
• Kale is a well-known super star, providing extremely high amounts of vitamins A, K and C. It provides Omega-3 fatty acids, protein and folate, and is a great source of a long list of essential vitamins and minerals. Kale’s detoxification properties have been much studied. source
• Collard greens aren’t as highly studied as the other two main ingredients. Just the same, their vitamin and mineral content is excellent. They provide more calcium than either red cabbage or kale, and are an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and cancer-preventative food. source
• Shallots are part of the allium family and provide necessary phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals. The allium family, and shallots in particular, have numerous health benefits including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. source source source

Even the dressing packs a powerful punch!

• While there isn’t yet comprehensive research on whether or not apple cider vinegar provides cancer benefits, it is said to improve blood glucose levels. source source source
• Mustard seeds also belong to the cruciferous family as well. High in selenium and a very good source of Omega-3 (source), mustard seeds contain anti-cancer compounds source
• Celery seed is traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent, intended to improve the symptoms of arthritis source
• Cumin is used as digestive support in Ayurvedic medicine source
• Black Pepper can increase the absorption of nutrients source
• Himalayan pink salt contains “the full spectrum of 84 minerals and trace elements” source

This winter slaw is definitely worth adding to your recipe repertoire! Make it on a Thursday evening and enjoy it on Friday night with pork chops, Saturday evening on fish tacos, and Sunday afternoon with pot roast and mashed potatoes. And please let me know how you liked it!