Lemon-Dijon Salad of Winter Vegetables
With both raw and barely cooked ingredients, this sprightly, very lightly dressed salad contrasts textures and seduces both eye and palate. It is full of flavor, freshness and color to spark even the grayest February day, and the snow pea greens add a breath of spring. These greens are sold…
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With both raw and barely cooked ingredients, this sprightly, very lightly dressed salad contrasts textures and seduces both eye and palate. It is full of flavor, freshness and color to spark even the grayest February day, and the snow pea greens add a breath of spring. These greens are sold in well-stocked markets. This salad is a good first course for almost any meal. To save time, use a bag of fresh precut broccoli and cauliflower bud mix, available in the produce section of most markets, and blanch them at the same time. Ideally, however, you should blanch each vegetable separately. You will want to serve the vegetables cold and crisp, so plan aheadeven a day aheadwhen preparing this dish.
Ingredients
- 1/2 head cauliflower, cut into florets of uniform size
- 1 small crown broccoli, cut into florets of uniform size
- 12 prepeeled baby carrots
- 3 oz. sugar snap peas, optional
- 3 oz. snow pea greens, optional
- 1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 2 Tbs. olive oil
- 1/2 bunch radishes, stemmed, and thinly sliced
- 3 scallions, ends trimmed, all white and about 2 inches of green, thinly sliced
- 1/2 bunch parsley, minced
Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and blanch cauliflower for 2 minutes. Drain well, and rinse cauliflower with cold water. Refill pot, blot drained cauliflower dry and roll florets up in a paper towel. Place in a plastic bag, and refrigerate. Repeat procedure with broccoli.
Refill pot, and bring to a boil again. Place snow pea greens in a colander, and set aside in kitchen sink. Blanch carrots, and pour carrot water over greens to wilt slightly. Repeat cold water-blot-refrigerate treatment with carrots, sugar snap peas and snow pea greens, if using.
Meanwhile, 1 hour before serving, combine mustard, lemon juice and garlic in a large salad bowl. Whisk in olive oil, salt and pepper. Put all blanched and raw vegetables in bowl. Toss, season with salt and pepper again and serve.
Wine Suggestions
With the tangy mustard and lemon juice dressing, plus the addition of garlic, scallions and fresh parsley, a crisp Pinot Grigio is a good choice. Oregon’s Pepi Pinot Grigio is one such crisp white with just a hint of apple and pear.
Nutrition Information
- Calories 90
- Carbohydrate Content 0 g
- Cholesterol Content 10 mg
- Fat Content 5 g
- Fiber Content 4 g
- Protein Content 4 g
- Saturated Fat Content 0 g
- Sodium Content 105 mg
- Sugar Content 4 g