This salad offers a fun new take on a beloved spring vegetable. It can be easily made with ingredients from the farmers market and a few pantry staples. Whip it up for a quick, flavorful, and elegant side dish in less than 30 minutes.
Adapted from My Kitchen Addiction
Ingredients:
1 bunch of asparagus
3 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon
1 tbsp stone ground mustard
¼ tsp pepper
A few handfuls of arugula
Handful of pecorino cheese
Handful of pine nuts
Directions:
Wash the asparagus and trim woody ends. Then take a vegetable peeler and make ribbons with the stalks. You can leave the tops whole or roughly chop. Add all of the asparagus to a large bowl.
Whisk together oil, lemon juice, mustard, pepper. Toss asparagus and then add a few handfuls of arugula until you have the right ratio of greens to dressing. Let the dressed salad sit for 10-15 minutes.
Add a handful of pine nuts to a small skillet on low to medium heat. Let them toast for about 5 minutes or until they turn slightly brown and release a small amount of oil.
Sprinkle toasted pine nuts and pecorino cheese on the salad. Serves 4.
Extras:
Storage tip: If you have leftover asparagus store the remaining stalks upright in a glass of water.
Substitutions: You can swap pine nuts for almonds, pumpkin seeds, pecans or other nuts you like that you have on hand. You can trade pecorino cheese for a sprinkle of parmesan.
