As we were going to be entertaining visitors from back east, I thought, considering the arrival of so many local goodies in the market, that our guests should be treated to a “locavore” dinner. I created this salad using little gem lettuce, Italian parsley and arugula from our garden, to enjoy with barbecued chicken. For dessert, what else but perfect local June strawberries! There are strawberries and then there is a variety grown here in the lower mainland that appear once a year in June…the sweetest berries ever.
Makes 4 Servings
4 to 5 cups mixed salad greens
1 lb. or so of fresh, young English peas, shelled
1 bunch young radishes, thinly sliced (French Breakfast would be great)
½ cup Italian parsley leaves
3 green onions or an equal amount of chives, sliced into 1/4” slices (feel free to use the chive blossoms if you have some)
2 eggs
Meyer lemon vinaigrette
Make the Meyer lemon vinaigrette, place in the fridge until ready to dress the salad.
Place the eggs into a small pot, cover with cold water. Covet, bring to a boil; remove from the heat, let stand for 8 minutes. Drain the eggs, running cold water into the pot until the water remains cold. Once the eggs are cold, remove the shells and set aside.
Bring a medium sized pot to a boil; salt the water and add the peas; blanch for 30 seconds. Remove from the boiling water to a bowl that is filled with ice-water, let cool.
Toss the salad greens, Italian parsley leaves, green onions or chives in a large serving bowl. Scatter the sliced radishes over the greens; drain the peas well, scattering on top of the greens. Drizzle with the Meyer lemon vinaigrette; toss salad together until ingredients are coated, to your liking, with dressing. Using an egg slicer, carefully slice the eggs, or simply chop then and lay on top of the salad; drizzle a little dressing on the egg slices and serve the salad immediately.
Note: This salad can be adapted using blanched and peeled fava beans or blanched asparagus that has been cut into 2” pieces. Instead of the egg you could use a nice, fairly young Pecorino or maybe both. It’s up to you!
Helpful link to the vinaigrette. Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette.
