SPRING GREENS
West Coast natives, from the Central Valley to the Central Coast, are all, to some degree, produce snobs. Now, don’t get defensive! Having high crop standards isn’t a bad thing. Agriculture is big in the state of California—the Salinas Valley is even called the “Salad Bowl of the World” in reference to the fun fact that 70% of our nation’s lettuce is grown there. Californians, especially, get to experience the bounty of each season with a cyclical abundance of fruits and vegetables.
So, what better way to showcase the produce yielded by the turning calendar than by making one of the most universally diverse dishes known to humankind? Behold, the humble salad! The variations that salads offer are truly infinite. Eat the season—challenge yourself to experience all that the Golden State’s spring has to offer by curating your own leafy medleys using what’s available at your local market or roadside fruit stand.
Remember, there is no wrong recipe for a salad—you can’t mess it up! Start with what’s in season, pick a leaf or two or more, make sure there’s some crunch, add a protein if you prefer, and Merriam-Webster highly encourages the presence of a dressing. The following is an assortment of three seasonally inspired salads to get your creative juices flowing for the warm weather kick-off.
Wedge-Style Salad
Serves 2
2 heads of romaine lettuce
3 hard-boiled eggs
1 lb. bacon
1 handful of cherry tomatoes
½ a red onion
Red wine vinegar
Blue cheese crumbles
Balsamic vinegar (a high-quality option with syrupy consistency is preferable, but a reduction or glaze will also work beautifully)
Instructions
Begin by preparing the salad toppings. Thinly slice the red onion before pickling it in red wine vinegar (preferably overnight but, if in a hurry, half an hour will suffice). Hard boil and ice the eggs before slicing them in half. Reduce the balsamic vinegar to a glaze (if needed). Cut the bacon into half-inch-wide bits and fry them to a crisp; set the bacon aside to strain on paper towels. Wash the cherry tomatoes, then cut them in half.
Prepare the lettuce by washing the romaine while keeping the lettuce heads intact. Pull off the outer leaves to expose the romaine hearts. Slice the exposed ends of the bases away, allowing the leaves to still remain attached to the base of the head. Now, gently unfold each head so that the hearts are exposed.
Assemble the Wedge-Style Salad
Place the romaine hearts on their own plates with the exposed side up. Nestle 3 hard-boiled egg halves against each romaine heart. Sprinkle the bacon, pickled red onion, and cherry tomatoes atop the romaine hearts. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the salad before finishing it off with the blue cheese crumbles.
Mediterranean Salmon Salad
Serves 2
1 bag of herb mix lettuce
2 Persian cucumbers
½ cup garbanzo beans (canned)
16 Kalamata olives (pitted)
1 red bell pepper
Feta cheese crumbles
For the lemon vinaigrette
Avocado or olive oil
1 lemon (juiced)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
Garlic salt
Black pepper
For the salmon
2 salmon fillets
Avocado or olive oil
1 lemon (juiced)
Garlic salt
Black pepper
Instructions
Begin by preparing the salmon fillets. Add oil to a sauté pan and heat it on medium (avocado oil is preferable because it has a higher burning point, which is an added bonus when working with an oily fish like salmon). Season the fish with garlic salt and black pepper, then drizzle the lemon juice on top. Cook the prepared salmon to your desired wellness.
Prepare the lemon vinaigrette by adding the minced garlic cloves and lemon juice to a mixing bowl, then season it with garlic salt and black pepper before mixing. After that, let it sit and marinade itself while you prepare the salad toppings.
To prepare the salad toppings, first wash the Persian cucumbers and red bell pepper. Thinly slice the Persian cucumbers and julienne the red bell pepper to bite-sized pieces. Strain and rinse the garbanzo beans and drain the Kalamata olives.
After the salad toppings are prepared, turn back to the vinaigrette and whisk in an equal part of avocado oil or olive oil (avocado oil will have a lighter palate, while olive oil tends to be heavier, so use whichever you prefer).
Assemble the Mediterranean Salmon Salad
In a large mixing bowl, add the herb mix lettuce followed by the prepared salad toppings and feta cheese crumbles before tossing with the lemon vinaigrette (reserve a bit of the lemon vinaigrette). Plate the tossed salad on two plates, top each with a salmon fillet, and pour the remaining lemon vinaigrette over the fish.
Central Valley Spring Salad
Serves 2
1 bag of spring mix lettuce
2 cooked chicken breasts
1 avocado
1 handful of blueberries
1 handful of pre-sliced almonds
Goat cheese crumbles
For the strawberry vinaigrette
2 to 4 strawberries
Italian salad dressing
Instructions
Begin by preparing the strawberry vinaigrette. You’ll want an approximately equal ratio of strawberries to Italian dressing. Wash and de-stem the strawberries before cutting them in half. Using a food processor, emulsify the strawberries with the Italian dressing until the mixture becomes smooth. If the dressing is too thick for your liking, add more Italian dressing to thin it.
Prepare the salad toppings. Slice the cooked chicken breasts into strips. Cut the avocado into cubes. Rinse and dry the blueberries.
Assemble the Central Valley Spring Salad
In a large mixing bowl, add the spring mix lettuce followed by the avocado, blueberries, pre-sliced almonds, and goat cheese crumbles. Then, toss it with the strawberry vinaigrette. Plate the tossed salad on two plates before topping each with a sliced chicken breast.
Editorial Director Lauren Barisic
Photographer Don Dizon
