I initially intended to make the delicious Survival of the Fittest kale salad posted on Foodzie, but we got fennel in our CSA delivery this week so I figured I’d try something new.

I had seen Heidi’s posting on a market kale salad on 101 Cookbooks but I kind of dismissed it. Eh, it’s got carrots. Not my favorites. I could leave them out, but it just didn’t appeal to me. The combination of farro and kale seemed like it might be weird, too.

I should know better and just trust Heidi’s recipes. I used my mandoline to shave the carrots and fennel into thin slices – both from our CSA, so they’re ultra fresh. And the kale and farro both came from the farmer’s market – truly a market salad.

I didn’t add avocado to the salad since it was just me and I wasn’t going to eat it all right away. I liked it. Not as well as the bacon-drenched one from Foodzie, but still, pretty good. Green goddess dressing is a favorite of mine. I thought it needed a little bit of acid so I added some Sherry vinegar.

I had more of the salad the next day, and it was even better. The chewy earthiness of the farro is great with the kale. And I didn’t even mind the carrots. I thought I was through with kale for a while since we got loaded up with it over the winter CSA, but I think this salad has changed my mind.

• Kale Market Salad (101 Cookbooks)