Fresh Spring Salad Recipe

This perfect healthy and fresh Spring Salad Recipe is the only one you need! Celebrate the season with all the bright and delicious flavors of springtime produce in this easy-to-make green salad! Including crisp and crunchy veggies like snap peas and asparagus, with refreshing notes of mint, and tender arugula, all lightly dressed with a simple lemon vinaigrette!

What happens when you throw all the peak-season spring veggies into a bowl? You have a crunchy, fresh, flavor explosion and the most perfect spring salad on your hands! A bowl of health and has so much flavor and texture; it's the ideal springtime salad that you can whip up in minutes and impress your guests with its bright and beautiful natural presentation! Dressed with a super light lemon vinaigrette, the natural flavors of the raw crisp veggies in this salad do ALL the talking!

The Best Spring Salad

This salad is your essential dose of springtime nutrition! It's light on lettuce so you get the full dose of crunchy, crisp, delicious, raw veggies! If you like texture in your salads, then this salad is for you! More reasons to LOVE this salad are that it's...

• Gluten-Free
• Vegan & Vegetarian
• Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Corn-Free, Coconut-Free)
• Sugar-Free
• Paleo, Grain-Free, Keto
• Easy, Quick, No Cooking, Just Chopping, & Great for Meal Prep
• Healthy Simple Side Dish or Add a Protein for a Meal

Salad Ingredients

• Sugar Snap Peas: Super crisp and crunchy, they're packed with Vitamin C and K, rich in beta-carotene and Vitamin A! They're ideal for snacking on raw which makes them perfect for tossing into a salad! (They're like a fresh crunchy (gluten-free) crouton!)
• Asparagus: The PEAK springtime veggie! Full of dietary fiber, antioxidants, Vitamin K and A, folic acid, what's not to love? You're going to want to get a bunch of thin asparagus because we are keeping these stalks RAW! Just using the middle and upper portions of the asparagus, you will love the fresh flavor and texture!
• Radishes: Add a pop of bright color to this veggie salad! With tons of Vitamin C and antioxidants, this spicy pop of color and flavor is just what your green salad needs!
• Artichoke Hearts: The only cooked ingredient in this salad. A simple can of quartered artichoke hearts is all you need; no cooking required, just give them a rinse! Super soft and tender artichokes hearts are full of antioxidants, potassium and are considered a superfood!
• English Cucumber: Add that refreshing and juicy bite of crisp cucumber! Using an English or Persian cucumber allows you to enjoy that thin green skin without having to peel away any nutrition! Cucumbers are loaded with Vitamin A, beta-carotene, and antioxidants.
• Fresh Mint: Mint is IN-SEASON and that means it's time to load in this flavor-packed herb to everything! So refreshing and cooling, fresh mint will add so much cooling flavor to this spring salad!
• Spring Greens: You can use a mix here! I did a combo of escarole and arugula! If using escarole, use the soft inner leaves that are lighter in color and somewhat yellow. Fresh arugula is a must for that extra dose of intense flavor! Some people don't like it and that's why you can choose to use it or now! Feel free to use some gem or butter lettuce too, as those are in-season!

Light Lemon Vinaigrette

To lightly marinate and soften up these beautiful raw spring veggies, just add a little acidic vinaigrette with some bright and zesty in-season lemons! Dressing this salad ahead of time with the lemon vinaigrette and allowing it to marinate overnight in the fridge, bring out all the flavors you want and textures to soften for prime eating experience! Here's what you need:

• Lemons: You'll need about 2 juicy lemons for this dressing! Sweet and sour, the fresh lemon juice helps breakdown the raw veggies and fiber! You can add some fresh lemon zest from the outer peel as well and you'll want an extra lemon to garnish the complete salad at the end with some fresh slices!
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil: You'll want a nice tasting extra virgin olive oil. Don't use plain "olive oil" which is made for cooking with heat. Extra Virgin "EVOO" is made for tasting and finishing recipes with its robust taste!
• Scallions + Garlic: Spring Onion/Green Onion/Scallion, whatever you want to call them, they are essential to this vinaigrette! Sweeter and milder than a typical yellow or red onion, so they're perfect for a light salad. Add some minced garlic and you've got all the flavor-enhancing you need!
• Salt + Pepper: I love adding some fresh cracked black pepper to a salad! it adds that perfect hit of spice and of course a pinch of salad is essential!

How to Make The Best Green Salad

1. Chop, slice, and dice all your veggies and greens.
2. Add them to a BIG bowl.
3. Whisk or shake up your lemon vinaigrette.
4. Pour it over the salad. Toss everything together.
5. Let it chill and marinate in the fridge before serving it up!

Additional Tips and Tricks

• If you don't like mint, feel free to swap it out with fresh dill! Dill is also an in-season spring herb and would be perfect in this fresh salad!
• Rather have some roasted or blanched asparagus? Go for it! Feel free to slightly cook it if you'd like or if you can't find thin enough asparagus to keep it raw.
• When it comes to chopping the snap peas, I sliced some lengthwise, some in half, and even left smaller ones whole! Do what you want; no need to be precise.
• I don't like to add a ton of vinaigrette or dressing, but feel free to add more or less to your liking! You can even make a larger batch of lemon vinaigrette to keep for later.
• Make it a full meal by adding some protein like beans or lentils, a chopped-up veggie burger, hummus, nut or seeds, even chicken or fish if you don't need it vegan!
• This salad is great for meal prep so you can store it in the fridge for up to 1 week and use it for a quick base for lunches, as a side dish to dinners, etc.

Print

Fresh and delicious, who doesn't want a big dose of fresh, in-season spring goodness?

Try these other delicious salads while you're here!

• Old-Fashioned Cucumber Salad
• Summer Kale Salad
• Raw Spiralized Thai Salad
• Classic Italian Pasta Salad
• Sunshine Spiralized Beet Salad
• Mexican Street Corn Salad

So tell me:

+ What's your favorite spring veggie?

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