Salad days are coming with arrival of spring
Will spring feel like spring? I hope so. My calendar shows that it starts Tuesday, and I’m in the mood for longer, warmer days. This primavera (“spring” in Italian) salad from “Mildreds Vegetarian: Vegetable Focused, Delicious Food,” by Daniel Acevedo and Sarah Wasserman (Hamlyn), sings of the season, showcasing sugar snap peas, asparagus and peas. Fava beans are part of the mix as well, but looking for a preparation shortcut, I use thawed frozen edamame.
The recipe calls for making ricotta from scratch. Again, I take a shortcut, using whole milk ricotta from the supermarket or natural food store, adding minced lemon zest as suggested for a flavor punch.
Primavera Salad
Yield: 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
3cups chilled, whole milk ricotta Minced zest of 1/2 lemon 12fresh asparagus spears, tough woody ends torn or cut off and discarded
Olive oil and salt
2cups fresh sugar snap peas, trimmed, strings removed
1cup frozen peas, defrosted and patted dry with paper towel
3/4 cup frozen, shelled edamame, thawed and patted dry with paper towel
Handful of fresh mint leaves, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
11/2 lemons, minced zest and juice, see cook’s notes
3/4 cup light olive oil or extravirgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon powdered sugar
3to 4cups pea shoots or mesclun (mixed baby greens)
Cook’s notes: When making the dressing, use the juice from 1 lemon initially. Taste and add additional lemon juice if needed.
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour off any liquid at the top of the ricotta. Combine ricotta and zest in medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate.
2. Place asparagus in a single layer on rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and season with salt. Roast in preheated oven until tender-crisp, about 5to 8minutes. Cool and cut each spear in half crosswise.
3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil on high heat. Add sugar snap peas and cook until tender-crisp, about 1 to 11/2 minutes. Drain and refresh with cold water. Pat dry.
4. Prepare dressing. In a lidded jar, place mint, garlic, zest, juice, oil, salt, pepper, mustard and sugar. Screw on the lid and shake vigorously to combine. In a large bowl, toss asparagus, sugar snap peas, peas and edamame with enough dressing to generously coat. Add pea shoots or mesclun and gently toss. Taste and add more dressing if needed. Divide between plates. Top each serving with several dollops of ricotta and serve.
Source: Adapted from “Mildreds Vegetarian: Vegetable Focused, Delicious Food,” by Daniel Acevedo and Sarah Wasserman (Hamlyn)