Kale-Dusted Pecorino Popcorn

The first time I made kale chips, I thought I had done something wrong, or at least was being punished for some unobserved slight. What else could explain how terrible, bitter flatness was being cruelly passed off as a chip? Chips were something I previously knew in puffy foil packages, salty, fried, and delicious; you dipped them in sour-cream-and-onion sauce; you bought them covered in chocolate at candy shops. These were . . . green, and tasted it, too. So I did the only sensible thing and ground the chips into a powder, renamed it “kale dust” so it would sound as magical as possible, and sprinkled it over freshly popped popcorn.
It was kind of amazing how something so unpleasant magically transformed itself once it became a garnish. It was even better when I starting using more olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and a good helping of Pecorino Romano. Pecorino is one of my favorite cheeses. I like to joke that it's dainty Parmigiano-Reggiano's loud Roman cousin—saltier, funkier, and a little goes a much longer way. Seek out the Pecorino with the black rind, if you can; it's got my favorite flavor. Though kale chips can be made from either major variety of kale—curly or flat—I get a much better yield from the flat variety. If you're using curly kale instead, bake the chips for 20 minutes and begin with a 1-pound (455-gram) bunch to achieve 2/3 cups dust. You could start with store-bought kale chips to save time.