I can feel spring deep in my being. I am craving the crunch and freshness of salads, which curiously draw me into the vegetable garden. At first glance, it seems there are few things growing at this time of year; everything is in that in-between stage, but if I soften my gaze, there is so much more than at first glance.

I also love that I need to get down on my hands and knees to find the little delights that are popping up in these slightly warmer days. I use the tiny leaves of the mustard, found at the heart of the bigger plants, and the smaller leaves of the seedlings, which have self-seeded everywhere. They are flourishing in all sorts of unexpected and unusual places. I use the bright yellow, dainty flowers from the older plants in salads.

Greens such as purple leaf mustard, rocket, and arugula provide peppery freshness and a boost of vigour. Salads with these greens combine antioxidants with detoxification and anti-inflammatory properties.

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Raw mustard greens alone can be very intense in a salad. Still, their pungent, peppery bite is quite appealing with the other greens and balances the sweetness of the fennel, apple and carrot. This salad was served with red rice, and this soup : I used 1 cup of fresh sweet peas instead of half a cup of dried peas.  It was a lovely, refreshing dinner and has been noted to be repeated.  It’s also really good with cooked red lentil hummus.

crunchy slaw salad with mustard greens

serves 4

Inspired by a vegetable garden and  Jerusalem by Ottolenghi.

ingredients

2 large bulbs fennel

2 medium carrots

1 large apple/firm pear

⅓ cup chopped dried cranberries

zest of one lemon

an abundant bowl of freshly picked mustard greens, arugula, rocket, parsley, fresh coriander, mint, tatsoi leaves, dandelion leaves – whatever green leaf you find in the garden at this time of year

a sprinkling of mustard and borage flowers to smile up at you

preparation

  1. To prepare the salad, peel the carrot and slice it thinly about 2 mm thick. Stack a few slices at a time on top of each other and cut them into matchstick-like strips.
  2. Repeat with the apple and squeeze generously with lemon to stop the apple from browning.
  3. Slice the base off the fennel, remove the first fibrous outer leaf, and cut the bulb in half lengthways.  Place each half, cut side down and cut lengthways into fine shards – the slices should be almost paper-thin.  Place all the strips in a bowl.
  4. Wash the salad greens and spin dry.
  5. When ready to serve, add the salad greens, cranberries, and lemon zest to the bowl of chopped vegetables. Pour over the dressing and toss well. Once the salad is dressed, eat immediately.

 

honey mustard dressing

Update

Add two tablespoons of soaked cashews with ¼ cup water and place in a blender with the remaining dressing ingredients below, blend until rich and creamy.

ingredients

2 – 3 Tbsp honey diluted with a dash of warm water

2 Tbsp olive oil/ flaxseed oil

1 level Tbsp yellow mustard seeds

juice of one lemon

salt

preparation

  1. Dry-fry the mustard seeds until they pop, transfer to a mortar and pestle and roughly grind.
  2. Add the diluted honey, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and whisk until well combined.  Set aside until you are ready to serve the salad.

Goodness shared from Stacey