April Salad

It’s not just about saving the planet - the best reason for eating locally grown vegetables in the prime of their season is that they simply taste so much better. No premature harvesting for the sake of appearance, no deep chilled storage, no gassing in airtight packaging to extend shelf life - just real food plucked from the soil by hardworking hands.
Tenderstem Broccoli is a delicious vegetable to serve hot or cold. In this recipe it is blanching then finishing on a hot griddle and served warm. The young dandelion leaves give a subtle bite; the radish and spring onion add freshness and the roasted hazelnuts complete the dish with a wholesome crunch. We have dressed this salad with a lovely Asian combination of Soy, Lime, Chilli and Syrup.

Ingredients For 6 to share

400g Tenderstem Broccoli
80gm Hazelnuts
A good handful of Dandelion Leaves 
6 Radishes, sliced
4 Spring Onions, sliced

For the dressing
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 tablespoon Sesame Oil
1 Lime, juice and zest
1 tablespoon Golden Syrup
1 fresh Red Chilli, finely sliced

Method

• Bring a large pan of lightly salted water up to the boil over a moderate heat. Blanch the broccoli for 4 minutes, drain, refresh under the cold tap, then put onto kitchen paper to dry.

• Heat a ribbed griddle pan over a high heat. Toss the hazelnuts onto the griddle, roll them to quickly toast- (this really brings out the flavour of the nuts) Remove the nuts from the heat, set aside

• Now put the broccoli onto the griddle, allowing it to char a little on all sides

• Arrange a bed of dandelion leaves on a serving platter, put the broccoli on top and scatter with hazelnuts, radish and spring onion

• Warm all the ingredients for the dressing in a small pan over a moderate heat. Use a whisk or stick blender to bring the dressing together, then pour over the salad and serve.