Kale Chips - Delicious! Who knew?

I have been meaning to make kale chips for years! — Actually, it has been ever since the time a friend mentioned that her son LOVED my favorite leafy green sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and baked. That had to be about 5 years ago at least, and since then I've had it in the back of my mind to give this recipe a whirl. Well, needless to say, that day did not come soon enough!
Yesterday, I had an appointment with a nutritional counselor. Even though I think I am a fairly healthy eater there are some things noted that could use a little tweaking. One is my mindless indulgence of salty snacks, AKA, an abundance of empty calories. Yeah, so what if I eat the "healthy" kind of potato chip? You know, the kind that is "natural", GMO-free, and with no tran-fats? The unfortunate truth in this is that no matter how seemingly healthy a potato chip brand choice is, the fact is it is still a potato chip: a thinly sliced potato, drenched in oil and deep-fried. There probably isn't any kind of potato chip on Earth that is truly healthy for me (unless, maybe if it is baked, then what, I ask, is the point?). However, the fortunate part in this is that the counselor mentioned trying kale chips as an alternative. Instantly I knew just what I had to do, and I knew just the place to find what I needed, and a little partner in crime to help me carry out my plan!

Lucky for me, I had one last stand of vegetables growing in my garden from the summer before, and it just happened to be — ***drum roll*** — kale! My son got completely excited about the process of helping out and making "chips" from ground up.

He loved ripping the leaves of kale into tiny bite-sized pieces and washing them in the salad spinner.

After washing the kale really good, we dried them best we could with the spinner, and then patted them dry with a clean cloth. We then tossed the kale with olive oil, some sea salt, tamari, and flax seeds. We were all out of parmesan, or else that would have been in the mix too. I lined a baking tray with parchment paper and put the kale in the oven (preheated to 350 degrees) for about 10-15 minutes. When I took them out and popped a few in my mouth, my response was WOW! I could have never guessed how delicious and "snacky" something so healthy could taste! Bursts of flavor melted in my mouth, and the warm crispiness of each piece added a unique texture to the whole eating experience. My son liked them too! Woo-hoo! Who would have thought? So excited to have found a healthy snack to add to my growing list, and the fact that my son likes it too — a double bonus! It is one of those things I think you have to try to believe —  and I'm so glad that I did!