Happy Spring! Making the most of the delicious vegetables out at the moment with this simple crowd pleaser. It makes a great side, and I plan to make it again soon as a starter with a big ball of burrata on top.
Spring Vegetable Salad
Ingredients
- 2 bunches asparagus
- 1 bunch broccolini
- 1 leek, halved lengthways
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt flakes
- 1 zucchini, thinly shaved (on a mandolin if you have one)
- 1 lemon
- 3 spring onions, sliced on a diagonal
- 3 tbsp Pecorino cheese, grated (you could also use Parmesan, feta, ricotta salata, manouri, burrata, stracciatella)
Method
- Heat a griddle pan over highest heat to grill the vegetables.
- Slice asparagus and broccolini into 5cm pieces. Keep the broccolini heads separate to grill after (they will cook and therefore burn quicker).
- In a bowl, toss in olive oil and salt and add to griddle pan.
- Cook for a couple of minutes, turning halfway through. You want them grilled and blistering, but still vibrant and green. They shouldn’t be soft but still have some bite to them when cooked. Once cooked, remove to a bowl and repeat with broccolini tops (but for less time).
- Brush some olive oil and sea salt along your leek (all surace areas should be covered).
- Lay leek flat on the griddle pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, until you can see it blackening where it’s touching the pan and beginning to soften inside. Then, turn and cook the outside. To make sure the whole leek is making contact with the pan, you can use the lid of a pot to weigh it down.
- When the leek has cooked, transfer to a chopping board and allow to cool, then slice into 5cm pieces.
- Arrange all vegetables on a plate.
- Using a microplane or fine grater, zest lemon over vegetables and squeeze over the juice of ¼ lemon.
- Top with an extra drizzle of olive oil, spring onions, Pecorino and serve warm or at room temperature.