RECIPE: Spring Salad

May 10, 2013 at 2:59 pm · Filed under Recipes, Vegetables-Salads-Herbs

A delicious spring salad. Photo courtesy
LearnToCook.com.

Make hay while the sun shines; ditto with the fleeting vegetables of spring.

What makes this a spring salad? Seasonal ingredients, including asparagus and green peas. The recipe, from LearnToCook.com, serves 4. The warm tomato vinaigrette can be used with any green salad, any time of the year.
RECIPE: FRESH PEA & ASPARAGUS SPRING SALAD

Ingredients

1 pound asparagus, trimmed

1-1/2 cups baby greens mix, washed and dried

1/2 small head bibb or butter lettuce, washed and dried

3/4 cup fresh shelled peas

3 tablespoon chives, chopped

1 tablespoon parsley, chopped

1/4 cup Warm Tomato Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Bowl of ice water

Preparation

1. PEEL thick stemmed asparagus about halfway up stalk. Otherwise, remove white/light portion at end of stalk.

2. SHELL the peas. Leave raw or blanch, if desired.

3. BOIL salted water in a large pot. When boiling, add the asparagus. Cook until just tender, about 5-7 minutes. Drain and immediately put asparagus into ice water bowl. Leave for a couple minutes and drain again. Lay on a dishtowel and dry. Cut the asparagus in half or in thirds. OPTIONAL PREPARATION: We steamed the asparagus in the microwave.

4. COMBINE the lettuces, chives and parsley in a large bowl. Pour up to half the vinaigrette over the greens. taking care not to drench them in dressing (less is more).

5. ADD the peas and asparagus. Toss with the salad. If needed, add a little more dressing; season with salt and pepper. Serve.

WARM TOMATO VINAIGRETTE

Ingredients

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup shallots, minced

1 cup tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced

¼ cup red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

2/3 cup dry white wine

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 to 2 tablespoons capers

Fresh peas from the pod are heavenly, raw or cooked. Photo by Gaetan Lee | Wikimedia.

Preparation

1. HEAT the olive oil in a saucepan over medium high heat and add shallots. Turn the heat to low and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes. Do not brown.

2. ADD ½ cup tomatoes and simmer 3 to 5 minutes. Add vinegar, garlic, wine, salt and pepper. Simmer another 15 to 20 minutes until reduced to a thick sauce.

3. SEASON to taste and stir in remaining tomatoes and capers.

4. SERVE warm on top of the salad.

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