the easiest tangy kale chips + the butterfly effect

February 1, 2019 Adi McCasland

You guys… this one is a long one, so feel free to scroll right to the bottom for the recipe if you’re short on time (because it definitely can’t be that you’re uninterested in the yoga story, wink wink). A new group of yogis began teacher training this past weekend. Many are students of mine, and I’ve received countless messages full of nerves, anticipation, fear, and questions. I remember my first, and I remember ALL of those feelings (plus about 17 more, I’m sure), but I recall being comforted by the fact that I decidedly would NOT be teaching. Ever. Nope. I was simply there to learn. I missed school, I loved yoga, and and I wanted to geek out on it with a group of other passionate yogis. Little did I know that 200 hours after walking into the “classroom” for the first time, my life would be changed. Probably more like six hours later when I had to teach down dog - one simple (yet, not to be taken lightly), ubiquitous yoga pose that took me all of eight seconds (wayyyy too fast, by the way) to guide my fellow YTT trainees through. That tiniest snippet in time gave me butterflies akin to a sixth grader discovering her first crush. Oh yeah… I’m definitely doing this.

Since then, I’ve learned who I am, I’ve learned who I am not, I’ve found my voice, and I’ve let go of others’ borrowed voices that brought me to today. I’ve also finally realized that everything that I just said is fluid. It evolves and devolves and changes completely, and it’s beautifully messy; and it makes me so fucking excited for this upcoming round of teachers. To my students who have chosen to take this path, I want you to know these things. You will constantly rediscover yourself. You will feel highs like you never have, and you will experience new levels of self-doubt. You will fall deeper in love with the practice, but good god damn if you won’t hate yoga sometimes. You will have to redefine the boundary that divides challenge and limit over and over and over again - not just for you, but for your students. Whether you ever choose to stand at the front of the room or not, you will be a teacher of yoga, and if only by example, you will guide those around you to a better, stronger version of themselves. Because here’s the thing, yogis, we have an obligation to ourselves, our community, our world. Are you familiar with the Butterfly Effect? It’s the idea that tiny actions can have non-linear impacts on complex systems. To exemplify this theory, one flap of a butterfly wing in the United States has the power to cause a hurricane across the globe in China. It’s real. It’s not fast, and there is a lot that happens between the butterfly’s flap and the hurricane, but it’s real. This is you, now. You have the power to effect real change in the world - not through mass global operations, but one person at a time. You can be the butterfly, and each seemingly small action can ripple through the world for the greater good of humanity. So go, yogis. To be the cheesiest I can be in this inspired moment, flap your wings, because even as one of almost 8 billion humans only the planet, you can make a difference.

Now, for the good stuff PART TWO and the correlation between the message above and the recipe below: On the last day of my very first teacher training, one of my very favorite yogis brought us a testing day snack, and that was where I learned that kale chips were a thing. A delicious thing! I bet she gave me the recipe six times, and for whatever reason, I couldn’t keep up with it, so rather than asking a seventh (or let’s be honest… eighth or ninth) time, I created my own. These kale chips are, of course, wicked easy, as any good snack should be and have just the right about of tangy, salty, crunchiness. For those of you nutrient curious readers, they are a good source of vitamin K, and if your nutritional yeast is fortified (most brands are), they are chock full of B vitamins and protein. If your cashews are already soaked, you’re looking at about three minutes of prep time, with the most tedious part being to make sure that you place the kale pieces in a single layer before baking them.

3) Place the prepared kale pieces in a large bowl, and scrape the cashew mixture on top. Using your hands, massage the cashew mixture until it fully coats the kale pieces. You’ll likely have some clumps that stick, but those are the best part!

4) Carefully lay the kale pieces flat and in a single layer on the baking sheets. It’s important to avoid overlap so that they crisp well while cooking.

5) Bake at 350˚ for 27-30 minutes, or until kale is crispy. It’s advisable to flip the pieces over halfway through, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t often skip this step.
6) Let cool for five minutes and enjoy!

kale chips
makes about 10-12 cups

2/3 cups raw, unsalted cashews, soaked for at least 8 hours or boiled for 5 minutes
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
3/4 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
2 Tbs lemon juice
3-4 Tbs water (start with 3, and add more as necessary)
2 small bunches or 1 large bunch of kale, washed, dried, stemmed, and torn into large pieces

1) Preheat your oven to 350˚ and line three standard size baking sheets with parchment paper.
2) Place everything except for the kale in a food processor, and blend on high until mostly smooth and the consistency of natural peanut butter. It should be really thick, but slowly pourable.
3) Place the prepared kale pieces in a large bowl, and scrape the cashew mixture on top. Using your hands, massage the cashew mixture until it fully coats the kale pieces. You’ll likely have some clumps that stick, but those are the best part!
4) Carefully lay the kale pieces flat and in a single layer on the baking sheets. It’s important to avoid overlap so that they crisp well while cooking.
5) Bake at 350˚ for 27-30 minutes, or until kale is crispy. It’s advisable to flip the pieces over halfway through, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t often skip this step.
6) Let cool for five minutes and enjoy!