Celebration Spring Salad
Course: main Skill level: easy Serves: 4 Vegetarian
600 g (1 lb 5 oz) new potatoes, halved if larger than bite-sized
1 sprig of mint
Salt
100 ml (3½ fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil 300 g (10½ oz) asparagus spears
200 g (7 oz) baby broad beans
75 g (2¾ oz) pea shoots, washed 12 radishes, quartered (soaking in ice-cold water for 20 minutes before chopping will give crisp results)
For the Dressing:
1 lemon, juice only
3 tbs crème fraîche or sour cream (oat-based crème fraîche is a dairy-free option)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 small bunch of chives, chopped finely with scissors
Pinch of salt and plenty of pepper
To Serve: halved soft-boiled eggs, or roasted almonds (optional)
1 Boil the potatoes and mint in a large saucepan of salted water for 15 minutes, or until tender, then drain and return to the pan, discarding the mint sprig. Toss with half of the olive oil, then cover with the lid and set aside to keep warm.
2 Meanwhile, prepare the asparagus. Remove any woody tips, chop off about 5 cm (2 in) of the stalk ready for steaming or boiling, and sliver the top of the spears into ribbons using a potato peeler. Set aside.
3 If you have a steamer pan, steam the asparagus stalks over the potatoes for 5 minutes, or until tender. Otherwise, cook them in a saucepan of boiling water for about 3 minutes. Drain and plunge into a large bowl of cold water to refresh and keep their colour.
4 Steam or blanch the broad beans for
3 to 5 minutes until just tender, then drain
and pop them from their skins.
5 To make the dressing, mix all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl along with the remaining olive oil.
6 Pour the dressing into a large salad bowl, add most of the pea shoots, the radishes, cooked asparagus, asparagus ribbons, broad beans and warm potatoes
(keeping a few of each ingredient back to garnish the bowl), then turn everything together, taking care not to break up the potatoes. Sprinkle over the reserved vegetables and any of the optional toppings and serve while warm.
Cook’s Note: For a non-vegetarian option, try topping with a few crispy bacon lardons, some cooked chicken, or flakes of cooked salmon (150 g portion of fillet).