Kale Tortellini Caesar Salad is a versatile summertime dish – it stores great in the fridge, so it’s easy to prepare in advance, and it’s hearty enough for a meal but light enough for a side!
This Kale Tortellini Caesar Salad is on heavy rotation in my house this summer. It’s been a huge hit with every audience – from a 4th of July cookout to a ladies’ lunch to a Monday night dinner at home, this salad fits every occasion. The cheese tortellini make it satisfying enough for a main meal on a hot summer day, and the loads of fresh kale lighten it up as a veggie side. Smothered in a homemade Caesar dressing and topped with crispy toasted breadcrumbs, this salad hits all the best flavor and texture notes!
A few keys to preparing this salad: First, be sure to massage your kale. This entails getting in there with your hands and squeezing the olive oil-coated leaves until they turn a vibrant green and reduce in volume. This step makes the kale tender enough to enjoy raw and helps reduce the bitterness that dark leafy greens can sometimes have. The second key is toasting the breadcrumbs to a crunchy golden brown and taking care to watch that you don’t take them too far or burn them. Finally, this salad comes together thanks to a homemade Caesar dressing that is perfectly tangy and salty.
I’ve been wanting to perfect a Caesar dressing recipe for a while, and this was the winning combination. It’s not too fussy, relies on what are pantry staples for me, and is worth the extra few minutes of time and dishes to make from scratch. I’m not a fan of anchovies, so I never have those on hand, but I do love fish sauce (for stir-fries, fried rice, curries), so I always have a bottle open. This Caesar dressing uses a few teaspoons of fish sauce in place of anchovies, and it’s the perfect substitute to achieve the desired salty, umami depth. The richness and creaminess of classic Caesar dressing traditionally comes from the addition of an egg yolk, but I don’t mess around with raw eggs, so I’ve added mayonnaise, which is made from eggs anyway. (And I love mayo. Like, must-have-three-jars-on-reserve-at-all-times-in-case-of-apocolypse love.) Aside from those two liberties, this is otherwise a traditional Caesar dressing with garlic, lemon, Worcestershire, parmesan, and olive oil.
Make this Kale Caesar Tortellini Salad today!
Kale Tortellini Caesar Salad is a versatile summertime dish – it stores great in the fridge, so it’s easy to prepare in advance, and it’s hearty enough for a meal but light enough for a side!
For the salad:
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
20 ounces cheese tortellini
1 large bunch curly kale
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
Grated parmesan, for serving
For the dressing:
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated parmesan
Juice of 1 large lemon
2 large garlic cloves
2 tsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
I invite you to try my seasonally-inspired,
plant-based recipes to create your own
joyful plateful!
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